The Philippines guns for its spot in the semifinals when it takes on Indonesia Sunday night, July 10, in the 2022 AFF Women's Championship at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
Match is set at 7 p.m. as the top-ranked and unbeaten Filipinas try to continue their scorching run in the past three games which earned the team nine points to lord it over in Group A.
The unblemished record so far not only provides the momentum they need but also a huge confidence booster heading into the next round as national team head coach Alen Stajcic hopes to secure the win to "get a good place in the semifinals."
Still, Stajcic wants her wards to remain grounded and humble against Indonesia, which is currently at No. 5 with one draw and two losses for one point.
"We have a saying in Australia that we don't want to put the card ahead of the horse," said the Australian mentor. "It's important that you don't look far ahead of yourself, you have to stay humble and keep your feet on the ground."
Singapore and Australia collide in their 4 p.m. encounter at the same venue while Malaysia and Thailand clash at 7 p.m. over at Binan Football Stadium in Laguna.
The Philippines is fresh from a 4-0 triumph against Malaysia last July 8 behind the efforts of Sara Eggesvik, Katrina Guillou, Quinley Quezada and Anicka Castaneda.
It was Eggesvik though who was hailed as Player of the Game by scoring one goal and giving up two assists for Quezada and Castaneda in the second half.
The World Cup-bound Filipinas have proven their depth in the tournament as Stajcic continues to use a deep rotation within her bench and utilize as many players as he needed.
The 48-year-old Aussie mentor added that the substitutions and adjustments mid-game also provides a "good progression" and "good competition" among the players as they vie for the final spots in the national team heading into the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.
Setting aside the long-term goal, Stajcic remains optimistic about what his wards are capable of in finishing the group stage.
"The fact that everyone in this team knows their roles and responsibilities, it doesn’t matter who plays and no matter what position they play," he added ."Everyone knows their role and everyone tries to execute in the best way they can."
Meanwhile, Thailand (2-1-0) trailed second in Group A with seven points, Australia (1-1-1) gained four points, Malaysia (0-2-1) finally earned two points, while both Indonesia (0-1-2) and Singapore (0-1-2) had one point each.
Over in Group B, Laos (1-1-0) led with four points, Myanmar (1-0-0) and reigning champion Vietnam (1-0-0) had three points apiece, Cambodia (0-1-1) pocketed one point, while Timor-Leste (0-0-2) has yet to get a point.