With the sun about to set on the Rizal pitch, members and hopefuls of the Philippine Azkals play dodge football as if they weren’t up so early for their morning practice.
Coach Michael Weiss blows his whistle and the boys hurriedly join him in the huddle. What follows is a two-and-a-half-hour’s worth of running, drills and scrimmages.
With only a little over a month left before their World Cup Qualifiers, the Azkals are working doubly hard to prepare for the competition. They know their German coach means business.
The team went back to training last Monday after a month-long break. Coach Weiss wants the team to get back in shape as quick as possible so he scheduled two training sessions a day. After their morning training in the Alabang Country Club, they spend another three hours practicing in the afternoon at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
“I know what to do to prepare them physically, technically and mentally. It’s a very intense training program," says Weiss.
This is precisely why Weiss gets frustrated whenever players miss practices due to club and celebrity commitments.
“There are too many distractions in this city. It’s very hard to keep the team together if they have so many extra-curricular activities," he adds.
Still, Weiss is very optimistic about the upcoming World Cup Qualifiers. The Azkals have around seven players who also suit up in professional leagues. They will also keep the services of the Younghusbands, Chieffy Caligdong, Ian Araneta, Aly Borromeo and Anton Del Rosario who were all significant in their past successes.
Fresh legs
Even if the Azkals’ core is still intact, they are nonetheless adding fresh legs especially on the frontline.
“[The recruitment and tryouts] were very good. The new guys definitely have the talent but we have to see how they adjust to the program. If they’re good enough, then they’ll make the cut," says Weiss.
Among those who might see action in the national team soon are goalkeeper Paolo Pascual from Cebu, former national player Leigh Gunn, Fil-Ams Nate Burkey and James Rochlitz, and Global Smartmatic striker Fil-Iranian Misagh Bahadoran.
The final lineup for their match against Sri Lanka though will be released two days before the competition.
Busy month ahead
Aside from their regular trainings, Coach Weiss wants the Azkals to play friendly matches and actually go into camp mode in the coming weeks. And where else should they play a tune up game than in the roots of Filipino football in Iloilo?
As coach laments, it’s too easy to get out of focus in Manila which is why it’s going to be all football for the players once they land in Cebu for their team-building session.
“I long for the day when I can put them on a tighter leash instead of having to wait two or three weeks before the competition until we get complete," he says.
Neil Etheridge and Simon Greatwich who both have commitments abroad will come home to the Philippines for the Cebu camp. The team gets even bigger once they land in Germany on June 12. Aside from the Fil-Germans who are joining the U-23 team, Angel Guirado, Rob Gier, Jerry Lucena and Ray Jonsson will also enlist in the camp.
The Azkals will play leg one of their qualifiers against Sri Lanka in Colombo on June 29, while leg two will be held at the Rizal Memorial Stadium on July 3.
“It’s still early to say how we’re going to do in the qualifiers but the potential is more than there," ends Weiss.
Training
After the warm up, the team splits into two groups – the goalkeepers and everybody else.
While the goalies practice catching and tumbling, the others focus on their footwork. Coach Weiss pairs up the players and they exchange short range and long range kicks to practice control of the ball’s length and direction.
Even the non-forwards also get to practice their striking skills in their drills. Serves right because you’ll never know when you’ll get an open shot in a competition.
But perhaps the highlight of their practice is the half-field scrimmage which saw the heavy presence of Phil Younghusband on both defense and offense.
U-23 selection
Aside from the Azkals, the coaching staff is also busy building the U-23 team that will compete in the Southeast Asian Games in November.
Among those already named to the lineup are Simon Greatwich, Mark Ferrer, Paolo Pascual, Yannick Tuason and Chris Camcam.
Coach Weiss indeed shows no partiality to any given player, veteran or newbie. In fact, Jason De Jong who was part of the roster that beat Vietnam last year will return to Manila to try out for the team again.
The U-23 team will go into camp-mode in July where they will also be tested in a pre-competition tournament in Indonesia.
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