The Philippine national men’s football team missed a shot at the finals and fell short with a 1-2 loss to Malaysia at the start of the four-team Merdeka Cup at the Bukit Jalil Stadium on Wednesday night.
Matthew Baldisimo was called for a penalty during a one-on-one challenge, allowing Mohamad Safawi Rasid to score on a winning penalty shot in the 73rd minute.
“I’m very happy with my players that we fought a very good fight until the final whistle. I’m very proud of them. We had a very good chance in the first minute of the game. And then of course, as you could see, we had another chance with what we saw was a penalty in the first half and in the second half. But that I cannot control,” said interim head coach Norman Fegidero Jr.
A win would have sent the Filipinos straight into the finals on Sunday afternoon.
Instead, Malaysia will fight Lebanon in a winner-take-all finals’ affair.
“For me, it’s a good preparation for us to play top-level football. Of course, Malaysia, Lebanon, and Tajikistan are good teams, and maybe one of them will be in our group in the third round,” added Fegidero.
Lebanon earned a spot in the finals with their 1-0 triumoh over Tajikistan.
The Philippines took the lead when Jefferson Tabinas, who is with Thai League 1 side Buriram United when not with the national squad, scored on a deflected shot from the left flank in the 27th minute.
After that, Malaysian midfielder Syamer Kutty Abba tied the match with a strike from the edge of the box in the 42nd minute.
The Philippines next plays the highest-ranked team in the tournament, Tajikistan, in the third-place match on Sunday.
