Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 20) – The Philippine women’s football team is ready to face challenges in their pursuit of a historic World Cup berth.
Team captain Tahnai Annis on Thursday said the Filipina booters are prepared for their campaign in the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup, where they are part of Group B.
The Alen Stajcic-coached squad will take on regional powerhouse Thailand in their first game on Friday, 8:00 p.m. (Philippine time) at the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai, India.
“We came here to compete and win games. We are building off our experience in the last Asian Cup. Definitely, we’re more improved than the last time,” said Annis, who’s part of the majority of the squad that competed in the 2018 edition.
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Forward Chandler McDaniel echoed their team captain’s sentiments.
“We’re willing to do what it takes to get to that goal,” McDaniel said.
The Philippines almost nailed a slot in the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup, but they lost to South Korea in the battle for the last Asian berth in the world’s biggest football competition.
McDaniel shared the team’s two-month training camp in the United States shaped their team chemistry on and off the pitch.
“Not many teams get the opportunity to train and live with each other consistently for two months. I think that it is a big factor that will help us succeed in this tournament,” she said.
Midfielder Anicka Castañeda added that the US training camp helped the players to get familiarized with the team goals and playing styles of Stajcic, who was hired in October last year.
“The two months that we had were enough time for us to learn the playing style that he wants us to play. We’re all on the same page,” Castaneda said. “The coaching staff made clear on what our goal is.”
Stajcic recognized the hard work of the Filipina booters during the training camp as they beat off the playing rust by some players and built chemistry despite coming from different parts of the world.
“We’ve been working hard the past couple of months. We’ve gone a long way,” Stajcic said. “We are here to try to create history for Philippine football.”
After their Thailand game, the Philippine women’s football team will be back on the pitch on Jan. 24 against Australia, and on Jan. 27 against Indonesia.
The Filipina booters must win at least two of their group stage matches to secure a quarterfinals spot.
The top five squads in the tournament will clinch a berth in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. The next two teams can still contend for a World Cup slot through a qualification in the inter-confederation playoffs.
