Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Confidence is high after notching a 2-0 victory against the Maldives in a friendly match on Thursday (September 3), but Azklas keeper Neil Etheridge said that they have to make sure that it manifests in the way they play against Uzbekistan.
IN PHOTOS: Philippines vs Bahrain (World Cup Qualifiers)
“Confidence is high, but we need to take that onto the field next week and show that we are real contenders for this (World Cup Qualifying) group,” said Etheridge.
The victory against the Maldives marked the third win in a row for the Azkals since adopting coach Thomas Dooley’s new system and introducing the likes of Stephan Palla, Luke Woodland, and Iain Ramsay to the team last June.
“Three games unbeaten and we’ve scored, conceded only one goal in the last three games, which is fantastic,” said the imposing keeper.
The Maldives side may have been very different from the team the Azkals barely scraped past with a 3-2 win in last year’s AFC Challenge Cup, but Etheridge believes that the degree of comfort that they have had this time around speaks volumes of the improvement the Filipinos have had as a unit.
“It shows us how much we improved since we played them last year,” he said.
“We only beat them quite close in the semifinal of the Challenge Cup, and today it was very comfortable and it shows we improved a lot.”
Related: Azkals blank Maldives in friendly, 2-0
The friendly was used for preparation ahead of the Philippines’ World Cup Qualifying fixture against Central Asian powerhouse Uzbekistan.
Despite bowing to North Korea, 4-2, in Pyongyang, the Uzbeks are still considered to be the top team in the group.
The Philippines trail Uzbekistan in the FIFA rankings by 49 positions, and the Azkals are hell-bent on pulling off an upset.
The Azkals will face Uzbekistan on Tuesday (September 3) at the Philippine Sports Stadium in Bocaue, Bulacan.
