Philippine Azkals vs North Korea. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
Perfection proved to be the undoing for the North Korean side as it fell to the Philippines, 3-2, in the 2018 Fifa World Cup qualifying Tuesday at Rizal Memorial Stadium.
Wanting to follow its game plan to a tee, coach Kim Chang Bok admitted that his side were rattled after his squad failed to score twice against the commendable Azkals defense in the first half.
“The problem in the first half is that we lost two chances of scoring and that became the turning point in terms of our spirit and making our strategy perfect,” he said.
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The Philippines stayed in step with the North Koreans for the whole game, as both teams had nine shots on goal.
Though North Korea was able to grab a 2-1 lead at the 48th minute, Kim said that the changes in the Azkals’ lineup also was a factor in the late stages of the game.
“This time, there were players that didn’t show up and they were obviously preparing for today’s match. They did very well,” he said, noting the insertion of forward Miguel Tanton to the starting lineup and the entry of James Younghusband as a substitute late in the game.
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“When we were competing in Pyongyang, we know we were more powerful than the Philippine team. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen today. But I still think our players did quite well,” said Kim.
North Korea now settles at second place in Group H with 16 points on five wins and a draw, still with a chance to advance to the third round of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers.