The Philippine Azkals look to enter the win column and keep a small distance in the race for a semifinal berth when they face lowly Timor-Leste Saturday, Dec. 11 in the AFF Suzuki Cup 2020 at the National Stadium in Singapore.
Getting a win in the 5:30 p.m. match is surely needed as the Azkals try to bounce back from a 2-1 defeat to the host nation in a result that could hurt their semis bid down the road.
Coach Stewart Hall admitted that the squad may need to win all of its remaining three matches in hopes of securing a top two finish and advance to the last four of Southeast Asia’s biggest competition.
Singapore leads Group A with six points courtesy of its two wins followed by Thailand and Myanmar with three points each going into their match also on Saturday followed by the Philippines and Timor-Leste.
The two best teams advance to the semis.
First on the Azkals’ list is Timor-Leste, which lost both of its games with similar 2-0 scorelines against Thailand and Myanmar.
Hall hinted that the Azkals will go into the match as the team that will attack more, with the likelihood of an additional striker to help naturalized player Bienvenido Maranon.
That may lead to a possible start for Angel Guirado, who entered late in the match and almost scored an equalizer against Singapore.
But the Azkals are also wary that Timor-Leste could pull some surprises which is something they would like to avoid.
Hall will finally have Scott Cooper around after missing the first match while waiting for his permit.
New defender Jesper Nyholm, who arrived earlier in the week but didn’t appear in the first match, could debut for the squad.