Younghusband relieved to get chance to make up for early miss
Phil Younghusband fires a shot in the Philippine Azkals’ 2019 AFC Asian Cup qualifying opener against Nepal. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/ INQUIRER.net
After missing his first penalty at the 14th minute, Phil Younghusband knew he had to make up for his miscue fast before the the frustrations could kick in.
Fortunately for the Azkals striker, he was gifted with a second chance with another penalty kick in the 21st minute.
This time, he made sure to send the ball to the back of the net, kickstarting what ended to be a dominating win for the Philippines, 4-1, over Nepal to open its 2019 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers on Tuesday.
READ: Nepal coach disheartened over big loss to Azkals
“My dad always told me that when you miss, you have to make the next one because if you miss again, otherwise that will play in your mind until you finally score,” said Younghusband. “Once I got the second penalty, I felt more pressure on the second one because if I missed that one, that’s already two (missed chances). But I think it’s always important to get a goal when you do miss a penalty because then, you forget about the missed one.”
The Fil-British forward didn’t stop there, as he made it a brace after another goal in the 23rd minute, his 45th international goal, to push his side to a comfortable 2-0 lead.
But more than anything, what mattered to Younghusband was the Azkals’ victory which gave them full three points to kick off the qualifiers.
READ: Azkals drub 10-man Nepal to open Asian Cup qualifiers
“I think the most important thing is we got the win. We could have had more goals, and whether it comes down to goal difference, we don’t know, but the most important thing is getting the win and making sure we play well,” he said.
Up next for the Azkals is Tajikistan in June where they get a chance to strengthen their hold of the top spot in Group F.
“I think the most important thing is we got a good start and won this game. That puts us in a very good position. Our goal is to make it to the Asian Cup and this is one step towards doing it,” Younghusband said.
