Ian Ramsay against a defender. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
The performance was far from sharp and incisive, but such is the depth of the Philippine side that it still strolled to a comfortable 2-0 win over the Maldives in a friendly Thursday night at Rizal Memorial Stadium.
An own goal from Mohamed Samdhooh three minutes into the second half and Jerry Lucena’s precise header 10 minutes later was enough for the Azkals to put away a youthful Maldives side.
With one eye on the crucial World Cup Qualifying duel against Uzbekistan on Tuesday, Azkals coach Thomas Dooley rested Manny Ott and Martin Steuble while giving young players OJ Porteria, Dennis Villanueva, Kenshiro Daniels, Kevin Ingreso, Paolo Bugas and Amani Aguinaldo runouts.
“It’s not the kind of game that you would put everything in,” said Dooley. “The most important game is Uzbekistan. We gave everybody a chance to play and the positive energy we had in the first two games.”
Uzbekistan notched its first win of qualifying after a 1-0 decision over Yemen in Tashkent on Thursday while North Korea tightened its hold of the Group lead with a 1-0 nipping of Bahrain in Manama.
Stephan Schröck showed flashes of fine form as right wingback and later as a winger while Patrick Reichelt had his moments but couldn’t find the back of the net.
Iain Ramsay proved a threat on the left before he made way for Javier Patino, who managed a shot on target in a 15-minute cameo.
Paul Mulders came out with an energetic display at midfield, justifying his inclusion in the squad after being left out in the wins over Bahrain and Yemen.
Goalkeeper Neil Etheridge was mostly untroubled.
“The most important thing is we get the victory, nobody gets injured and everybody gets confidence,” said Dooley.