Relying on its fluid attack, Myanmar (Burma) pounced on an out-of-sorts Palestine side, 4-1, last night to reach the finals of the Philippine Peace Cup at Rizal Memorial Stadium.
Showcasing their progress under Serbian coach Raddy Avramovic, who took over early this year, the Burmese side scored two goals in each half before the Asian Cup-bound Palestinians grabbed a late consolation goal in a match played in the rain.
The victory sent the Burmese to the finals Saturday opposite the winner of the Philippines-Chinese Taipei match going on at presstime. Palestine will face the loser of the match in the third place battle.
Admittedly lacking in preparation, the Palestinians were on the backfoot for most of the match with Myanmar taking just 26 minutes to unlock their defense with Kyaw Zayar Win opening the scoring.
Midfielder Tin Win Aung finished off a flowing move in the 38th minute to double the lead, before Win got his second four minutes after the break.
Burmese star Kyaw Ko ko fed Nanda Lin for the fourth goal in the 71st minute as the Palestinians looked a shadow of the squad that won the AFC Challenge Cup early this year.
Palestine coach Jamal Mahmoud admitted that the war back home has thrown off its preparations for the tournament. Several players from the team that won in the Maldives are also unavailable due to club commitments.
“We gave new players a chance,” said Mahmoud. “We didn’t play well because we didn’t prepare very well. The war can be the reason. You see today the players fitness was very low.”