KUALA LUMPUR—Philippines coach Sven-Goran Eriksson on Friday kept his team’s confidence in check as the Azkals brace for a stern test against winless Timor Leste in Group B of the AFF Suzuki Cup here.
Just two weeks into the job, the Swede knows that his squad stacks up well against the best in the region, but that doesn’t mean Timor Leste—the lowest ranked team in the competition by Fifa at No. 191—can’t give the Azkals problems especially with their hopes of advancing to the next round on the line.
“We can’t look past Timor Leste,” said the 70-year-old, whose team also has to face Thailand on Wednesday in Bacolod and Indonesia in Jakarta on Nov. 25. “We can’t look ahead to any match except for the one tomorrow. We know we can’t take this team lightly despite the fact that they’ve had a difficult start to the tournament.”
The Azkals opened the tournament with a 1-0 win over Singapore with Patrick Reichelt firing home the winner from close range in the 77th minute at Panaad Stadium in Bacolod City on Tuesday.
The new home-and-away format for the group stage has the Azkals playing against the Timorese side at Kuala Lumpur Football Stadium since Timor doesn’t have a suitable venue back home.
Eriksson has ruled right-back Luke Woodland for the remainder of the tournament due to a foot injury, but left-back Daisuke Sato, who came off the bench against Singapore, is fit to start, which could mean Martin Steuble will now begin the game at right-back just like in the second half against the four-time champion Lions.
“Luke is not available for the rest of the tournament,” Eriksson said. “He is out for, according to the doctors, a month.”
The Azkals have beaten Timor three times in the competition, the most dramatic of which came 14 years ago when Chieffy Caligdong scored twice in stoppage time to snatch a 2-1 win over the tournament newcomers also here in Kuala Lumpur. The Timorese got off to a rough start with a 7-0 defeat to Thailand in Bangkok, before bowing to Indonesia, 3-1, in Jakarta on Tuesday.
“They (Timor Leste) had a very, very difficult start to the tournament,” Eriksson said. “But in their second game against Indonesia, they did well and scored the first goal. So we have to pay attention. It’s a very important game for us. We started well in the tournament, good result and three points. We have to play very well.”
And while Eriksson took delight over his team’s performance against Singapore, the well-traveled coach thinks they can still play better as the tournament progresses.
“I hope that we play a good game,” he said. “We have to play good football, defend well and win the game.”