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[av_heading heading=’Knee injury downs Manny Ott ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=’30’ subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY ADRIAN STEWART CO
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MANILA – Philippine Azkals sustained another blow heading into its 2019 AFC Asian Cup qualification match against Yemen on Tuesday with top midfielder Manny Ott suffering a knee injury.
Ott, one of the 23 players head coach Thomas Dooley lined up for the Yemen game, had a medial cruciate ligament (MCL) injury, causing him to get sidelined for around six weeks.
“It’s unfortunate that I can’t be there for the team,” said Ott, who also plays for Ceres Negros in Philippines Football League.
“I have to focus on recovery now as there are still important matches ahead,” he said.
Ott was the fourth key Philippine men’s football team player to get ruled out due to injury ahead of the crucial game in Doha, Qatar.
The others were Misagh Bahadoran, Amani Aguinaldo and Javier Patiño.
But in Ott’s absence, Dooley may still rely on his other midfielders – James Younghusband, Iain Ramsay, Dennis Villanueva, Kevin Ingreso, Hikaru Minegishi, Harry Foll, and Paul Mulders – to fill the spot.
The away game against Yemen will be Azkals’ fourth match in the qualifying event after scoring 4-1 over Nepal on March 28; 4-3 over Tajikistan on June 13; and a 2-2 draw with Yemen on Sept. 5./PN
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