Azkals conquer Indonesia, book AFF semis ticket

Azkals. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—And the Philippine Azkals finally did it.

Not only did they book an early ticket to the semifinals of the Asean Football Federation (AFF) Cup, they also exorcised the demons that Indonesia inflicted upon the Philippines for 56 years as the Azkals buried the Garuda 4-0 in their group stage encounter in Vietnam Tuesday evening.

Azkals defender Robert Gier found the back of the net in the 80th minute to solidify the Philippines’ bid for the semifinals with a second chance strike after Indonesian keeper Kurnia Meiga denied his earlier header.

It was the first victory of the Azkals against the Garuda who have tortured them since 1958 and dealt two humiliating losses of 12-0 and 13-1 in 1972 and 2002 respectively.

Phil Younghusband, who played as the central attacking midfielder in the 4-2-3-1 formation, gave the Azkals an early 1-0 lead at the 16th minute scoring from the penalty spot.

The Philippines forced the Indonesians, who played in the 4-4-2, on the back foot with a relentless attack that saw them clog the right flank that led to their multiple scoring chances.
Manuel Ott made it 2-0 for the Philippines at the 53rd minute off a cross from midfielder Misagh Bahadoran.

Martin Steuble got on the scoring act in the 68th minute when he stunned the baffled Indonesian defense with a close-range strike off a Younghusband pass.

With the victory, the Azkals have six points in the Group A with a 2-0-0 win-loss-draw slate.

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