Twenty-four players were named to the Philippine Azkals squad for the third round of the 2023 AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers which starts Wednesday, June 8 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
German Bundesliga standout Gerrit Holtmann headlines the list of players that earned the nod of returning coach Thomas Dooley for the final phase of the continental qualifiers.
But Holtmann, who scored five goals during the 2021/22 season, won’t be available until after the Azkals’ first match against Yemen.
The rest of the roster will be a mixture of veterans and players from the youth level as the Azkals hope to secure qualification to the Asian Cup for the second straight time.
Birmingham City goalkeeper Neil Etheridge is back behind the sticks for the Azkals while naturalized striker Bienvenido Maranon will suit up for just his second competition with the national side.
Mark Hartmann, brothers Manny and Mike Ott, Kenshiro Daniels, Patrick Reichelt, Dennis Villanueva and OJ Porteria were tapped for another tour of duty while U-23 mainstays Oliver Bias, Sandro Reyes and Oskari Kekkonen also made the list.
Also joining are Dylan de Bruycker and Jhan-Jhan Mellliza, who could earn his first international cap.
Tasked to play defensive roles are long-time players Amani Aguinaldo, Daisuke Sato and Simone Rota, Miguel Mendoza, Mar Diano, Jesse Curran and Jefferson Tabinas, the Japanese second division player who made his debut in last year’s World Cup/Asian Cup Qualifiers.
Kevin Hansen and Anthony Pinthus will join Etheridge as the team’s goalkeepers.
The Azkals will look to either top Group B or emerge as one of the five best second placers to qualify for the 2023 Asian Cup.
After Yemen, the Philippines takes on host Mongolia on June 11 and Palestine on June 14.
The final list came after a rocky preparation that saw Dooley electing not to include captain Stephan Schrock coupled with the Azkals losing to a selection of Philippines Football League players in a recent tune-up match.