Filipinas ‘punished by one error,’ says PH football coach Stajcic

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine women’s football team may have fallen short of its comeback bid, but national team coach Alen Stajcic said he’s “pretty happy” with the Filipinas’ overall performance against regional powerhouse Thailand. 

Stajcic only pointed out one crucial sequence that led to the the Philippines’ first loss in the AFF Women’s Championship 2022.

Still, the former Australia national team head coach said it was a “really good game” and either team could’ve won it.

“Unfortunately, one error cost us the game tonight (Tuesday), but we had enough chances to win the game,” said Stajcic after the Filipinas bowed to the Thais, 1-0, in the final Group A match.

“We got punished by one error and that happens in international football against good teams.”

The 53rd-ranked Filipinas conceded a goal as they let Thailand’s Kanayanat Chetthabutr slip inside the box and head home the winner.

Sofia Harrison and Dominique Randle were both unsuccessful in clearing the ball, while goalkeeper Olivia McDaniel arrived too late to prevent the Thai goalscorer. 

It was only the second goal that the Filipinas conceded in the tournament – the first during their come-from-behind win against Indonesia.

However, it had massive implications as the Philippines slid down to second place in Group A heading into the semifinal round.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t take our chances, but in terms of football on the pitch, I was pretty happy,” said Stajcic, noting that it was “probably the best football” that they played in the entire tournament.

The loss ended the free-scoring form of the Philippines, but they actually ended the match with 5 shots on target and received 12 corner kicks.

Thailand, meanwhile, had 4 shots on target, but only had 3 corner kicks in more than 90 minutes of game time.

“Both teams did really well, both teams showed some good attack, and some resilient defense and you know I actually thought it was a good spectacle,” said Stajcic.

Both the Philippines and Thailand will head into the Final Four as the top two teams in the group, along with defending champion Vietnam and Myanmar, which also clinched semifinal berths after topping Group B.

But Vietnam and Myanmar will still play each other on July 13, Wednesday, to determine the final seedings in Group B.

Group A top seed Thailand will take on the No. 2 team in Group B, while the Philippines will clash with the other group topnotcher.

The semifinal phase will begin on Friday, July 15, at 4 pm at the Rizal Memorial Stadium. – Rappler.com