Football: Azkals blanked by Bahrain in friendly
The Philippine Azkals were competitive at the start but were unable to get past world No. 86 Bahrain
The Philippine Azkals suffered a 1-nil loss at the hands of world No. 86 Bahrain in an international friendly held at the Al Muharraq Stadium on Tuesday night (Wednesday early morning in Manila).
It was a competitive tune-up match for the Philippine men’s football national team in the first half despite yielding the opening goal to the Gulf nation.
However, the squad ranked 46 spots lower was unable to connect its middle and advance the ball to their attacking half in the last 45 minutes.
Coach Hans Michael Weiss’ defense and goalkeeper Neil Etheridge were also challenged a handful of times in the second half by Bahrain’s unrelenting offense, but managed to preserve the one-goal deficit by packing the box.
The result was acceptable for the Azkals, who were undermanned and are preparing for their first pair of matches in the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup 2027 joint qualifiers this November.
The Philippines shall host regional rival Vietnam on November 16 at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium, before meeting Indonesia on the road on November 21.
The Azkals file photo
