Much has been said about the players who, despite so many invitations in the past, continue to ignore the call ups extended to them by the Philippine Football Federation to play for the team.
But more on this later.
For now, The Designated Kit Man would like to acknowledge and pay tribute to the Azkals who are always there to represent the country come hell and high water.
Captain and long-time goalkeeper Neil Etheridge, Patrick Deyto, Patrick Reichelt, Daisuke Sato, Mike Ott, OJ Porteria, Kevin ingreso and the returning Amani Aguinaldo can be considered as the OGs of the team formerly known as the Azkals. Despite losing the moniker that has been synonymous with their names and careers, they were always present when called. They have given so much for the team in the many years that they have taken the pitch to don the sun and the three stars. Not much has been expressed to show gratitude for their desire and unrelenting passion to play for the flag and country, but they still do it anyway.
Reichelt is the current ironman of the team. The Kuala Lumpur City winger in the Malaysia Super League Super League has lodged a total of 83 appearances for the team, including the game in Basra. He first played for the Azkals in a scoreless draw against Cambodia in September 2012.
Etheridge is second on the list. The Birmingham FC keeper in the EFL Championship and Azkals captain has earned 79 caps (including the game early this morning) for the team. He has been with the team since the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers, earning three clean sheets in his first tournament manning the sticks for the Philippines.
Sato, the Davao Aguilas FC star, has 60 caps tucked under his belt. Known for giving his all on the pitch, Sato is also a good guy off the pitch. His attitude and love for the sport remains as fierce since the day he wore the Azkals uniform in 2014 against Nepal.
Trat FC center back Aguinaldo has been a steadying presence in the Azkals’ backline when healthy since 2013. He has 56 caps with the national team.
Ingreso, who moved to the Philippines with his family to play for Taguig FC in the Philippines Football League, has 41 caps since debuting against Yemen in the 2018nFIFA World Cup qualifiers. He is best remembered for scoring the equalizer against Tajikistan, slamming the ball off a header in a 2018 game at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum. A Phil Younghusband strike on the spot eventually gave the home team a 2-1 win over the visitors as the Azkals clinched a historic spot at the 2019 Asian Cup.
Ott, the attacking midfielder for Barito Putera in Indonesia’s top tier Liga 1, made his debut for the Azkas in the 2016 AFF Championship. He scored the lone goal for the Philippines in the 3-1 loss against Bahrain. He has been capped at least 39 times.
Porteria also plays in Indonesia as winger for Dewa United in Liga 1, first suited for the country during the 2011 Southeast Asian Games. Remarkably, he started his national team career when he got invited to attend the training for the World Cup qualifiers in 2014 in Manila after getting attention in a national team tryout in California. He has 37 caps.
Deyto, on the other hand, plays as a goalkeeper for Chonburi FC in the Thai League 1. He was first called to play for the team in 2013 and since then, has been a fixture in the national squad 18 teams. Deyto is known to give his all to the team when he gets called up saying that “it is always a privilege for him to play for the Philippines while he still can.”
All these years these players are the go to guys in almost any national team. They commit in a heartbeat, but more importantly, they show up. Which in this age, is so hard to come by. With injuries, club duties, personal reasons and other concerns (agents?), player’s availability is always a challenge.
Perhaps the younger Azkals can learn a lot from their Kuyas or Manongs on how to remain healthy, competitive and focused in playing for the Philippines all these years.
More importantly, they can learn a lot of commitment, patience and perseverance while Neil and company are still with the team.
While on this, I would humbly suggest to the PFF to move on from the players who until now refuse to play for the national team. There are so many foreign-based Filipinos and homegrown talents, who may not have the pedigree or the credentials of having played in the biggest leagues in Europe or somewhere else, but who are more than passionate and are just waiting to be given the opportunity to play for the Philippines. Le’ts prioritize these players rather than those who treat the Philippines as a spare tire or “reserbang kabayo” in their football careers.
Stay safe. Stay happy peeps!
For comments or questions, you can reach The Designated Kit Man at erel_cabatbat@yahoo.com or follow his account at Twitter: @erelcabatbat
