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BY ADRIAN STEWART CO
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MANILA – Philippine Azkals struggled all game long and settled for a scoreless draw with Nepal in the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 qualifier on Tuesday night at the Anfa Complex in Kathmandu.
With the outcome, Azkals will have to wait a little longer before cementing its place at least in the 2019 Asian Cup in Abu Dhabi. Its next match will be on March 27 against Tajikistan at the Panaad Park and Stadium in Bacolod City.
But Azkals remained on top of Group F with 9 points. Second and third placers were Yemen and Tajikistan, which also settled for a scoreless draw in their own match.
Azkals strived for decent attempts to score but was fended off by the tight defense of Nepal.
Phil Younghusband and Mike Ott had long shots in the opening half but the opponent easily thwarted their attempts.
The Philippines had a chance to sneak one in the injury time when Neil Etheridge sent a wonderful free kick off the set piece into Carlos de Murga but the latter’s header was a little bit to the right.
“Like what I said, this Nepal team had moments of brilliance, especially on their home floor,” said Azkals head coach Thomas Dooley. “Good thing only we did not concede a goal to them.”
But Dooley was still content with the performance of the Philippine squad despite missing Javier Patino, midfielder Manny Ott and defender Amani Aguinaldo due to injury.
If Azkals goes all the way to a top two finish in the group, it will advance to the next round of the AFC Asian Cup in 2019 in Jordan./PN
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