THE Asean Football Federation Suzuki Cup – Southeast Asia’s premier football competition for national teams – holds a special place in the hearts of Filipinos.
In 2010, it served as a jump-off point to the Azkals’ phenomenal rise to stardom following their surprising semi-final run in this prestigious tournament.
And after reaching the semi-finals in the past three editions, the Azkals – made up of homegrown talent and players from overseas with Filipino blood running in their veins – will try to barge into the finals and hopefully win the championship for the first time.
Well, sweet revenge is exactly what the Filipinos are seeking for when they do battle against the regional powers on home ground beginning today at the Philippine Sports Stadium in Bocaue, Bulacan.
The tournament will be held from today until December 17 and is being co-hosted by Myanmar and the Philippines.
Under American head coach Thomas Dooley, the Azkals will seek to make the most out of the big psychological home-field advantage they are enjoying to hurdle defending champion Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia in the group stage and reach the final this time or even go all the way to the title.
They are the three teams which have knocked them out of the tournament’s last three semi-finals, in 2010, 2012 and 2014.
The home squad will begin their campaign against Singapore totday.
Under shrewd Serbian coach Rady Avramovic, the Singapore Lions booted out the Azkals in the semi-finals of the 2012 edition before eventually clinching the championship at the expense of neighbours Malaysia in the final.
On Tuesday, the Filipinos go up against the Indonesians, who eliminated them in their semi-final debut six year ago, sweeping both matches at the Bung Karno National Stadium after the Philippines were unable to put up a suitable venue for the home-and-away series.
The Azkals’ latest tormentor were the Thai War Elephants, who eliminated them in the Final Four in 2014 en route to claiming their fourth championship under coach Tiatisuk Senamuang, the Thai Zico.
But while they are aware of the huge challenge ahead in their bid to finally win the elusive title, their home court advantage in one of the two groups and playing in front of their countrymen should give them extra motivation to play well.
This will be a golden opportunity and a perfect time for the Filipinos to surpass their achievements in the tournament.
In fact, the team now has quality players who can help the Azkals reach the final for the first time. And as shown by their latest victory over Kyrgystan last week, the morale and team chemistry of the Azkals are definitely on the rise.
The Filipinos stunned the highly rated Kyrgystan visitors, 1-0, at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium. Their morale-boosting win completed a sweep of their series after they prevailed, 2-1, in their previous clash in the Kyrgyzstan capital Bishkek last month.
So will the Philippines be able to reach the final this year now that the event is set to be held on home ground?
Can the Azkals pull off the same “miracle” in the Suzuki Cup? We certainly hope they can.
The hometown fans will expect the Azkals to play their hearts out, go out there and win the title.