Philippines Azkals the favorites in friendly versus Laos

The final friendly of the Azkals’ South East Asia tour will see the Philippines take on Laos in Vientiane. It is the third of a three-nation swing that began with a disappointing goalless draw in Cambodia, followed by a jaunt to Singapore, where they bounced back and came away with their first win over their opponent since 1972, and only their second ever. Laos is one of the teams favored to reach the final stage of the Suzuki Cup later this year with Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia likely to vie for the two qualifying spots for the main stage in November. However having risen to the third spot in South East Asian football this year, the Azkals are looking to cement their place at the top of the region with another win against lower-ranked opposition. Rankings and past matches Laos is ranked 43 places below the Philippines, but in June this year they were at 172. Simply put, the reason they dropped so far in such a short space of time is because they haven’t played any matches as a national team in 2012, and so haven’t picked up any points. Effectively, this means Laos are worth a place in the 170s, though will be a bit rusty together. Laos has only won one game since the qualifiers for the 2010 Suzuki Cup, although when they qualified for the final stage, they managed an impressive 2-2 draw with Thailand before succumbing 6-0 and 5-1 to Indonesia and Malaysia. In the whole of 2011 Laos managed a win against Cambodia, a draw with Taiwan, and four losses in their six games. The Azkals, meanwhile, will be playing six games in September alone with the friendlies against Cambodia, Singapore, and Laos and the upcoming Philippine Football Peace Cup. Having played eleven international matches this year – excluding games against club opposition – the Philippines now has an impressive record of five wins, four draws, and two losses for 2012. Coming off the back of only their second victory against Singapore in history, the Philippines now have the perfect opportunity to consolidate their position. The last time the two teams faced each other was back in 2010 for the Suzuki Cup. Ending in a 2-2 draw, the Azkals will be expected to improve on that result and come away with a win. Expected line-ups The Philippines will be without the impactful Younghusband brothers and Jerry Lucena, however, with Phil and James returning to Manila to be with their family during the first anniversary of their mother’s death while Jerry Lucena has been recalled by his club, Danish Superliga side Esbjerg fB. The Azkals will still have the solid Stephan Schröck to anchor the midfield, and after his man of the match performance in the 2-0 win over Singapore, he continues to impress his value on the team. Assisting both goals with two great through balls, his hard tackling and determination in the center of midfield, though he is normally a defender for his club Hoffenheim in the German Bundesliga, combined with clever passing and creativity shows how he is the Azkals’ most complete player. Without James, Patrick Reichelt may well get a start on the right, while Denis Wolf and Ian Araneta are both available up front, though Denis Wolf is perhaps the more likely to start given past substitutions and line-up selections. Meanwhile Laos’ dangermen will be strike partners Visay Phaphouvanin and Lamnao Singto.  Phaphouvanin is Laos’ current top goal scorer with sixteen goals in thirty-eight appearances while Singto was the top scorer in the 2011 SEA Games. Laos has a proven goalscoring record, having scored in every game since their 6-0 drubbing by Indonesia in the last Suzuki Cup. However they have also failed to keep a clean sheet since their 0-0 draw with Cambodia in Suzuki Cup Qualification. This game will hopefully see plenty of goals,then, based on Laos defeating Cambodia in the first round of World Cup Qualification 8-6 over two legs. The Philippines, meanwhile, has scored seventeen goals in their eleven matches this year, conceding eleven goals along the way – averaging one per match. All of Laos’ players also either play in the Laotian or Thai leagues. Projected Azkals starting line-up: Likely to continue the 4-2-3-1 formation built up during the preparation for the Challenge Cup, here is a projected line-up for the match later tonight: