Azkals try to overcome tough Indonesian team

The Philippines, parading one of its strongest lineups yet, gets a crack at a former tormentor in Indonesia when they clash in an international friendly game tonight at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.

The Azkals are looking for a better result against the Indonesians in the second of their three-game calendar of friendly matches this month.

The Azkals, who held Malaysia to a scoreless draw last Friday, have a score to settle with the Indonesians, who beat them via 1-0 scorelines over two legs in the 2010 Suzuki Cup semifinals in Jakarta.

Both teams have different lineups now with the Azkals strengthened by the entry of several foreign-raised players, while Indonesia is missing some of the stars who were instrumental in their run to the semifinals two years ago.

“We have a different team but the desire to work hard and get a good result here is always there,” said Indonesia striker Irfan Bachdim.

The Indonesians are currently deprived of its best talent because of a Fifa ruling barring players in unsanctioned leagues to represent their country. Most of the stars of the national team play in the breakaway Indonesia Super League.

“A lot of things have happened the past two years and it’s water under the bridge for us,” said defender Rob Gier. “What’s important for us is to keep winning and improving.”

Gier, who also does scouting for the team, said the Azkals should be wary of the Indonesians’ pace.

“They play the game with a lot of pace and put pressure on the ball early. They like to go forward quickly and use their workrate so our fullbacks and the defense would have to be spot-on,” he said.

The Azkals, though, suffered a blow Sunday night when creative midfielder Stephan Schrock was forced to leave the team and return to Germany because of a family emergency.

Still, the Azkals have depth in the squad with Fil-Danish duo Jerry Lucena and Dennis Cagara also joining the side and Phil and James Younghusband and goalkeeper Neil Etheridge also returning.

“I think it’s the first time in a long while that we had two good players at every position,” said Azkals coach Michael Weiss, who still has not decided on his starting eleven.  “This is a test match and we can use test match as an opportunity to test younger players.”

James Younghusband, one of the holdovers from the Suzuki Cup squad, welcomed the competition for spots in the squad.

“It’s good because there’s competition for places in the team and no one can relax.,” said Younghusband. “We have to be on our toes and  show that we deserve a place in the squad.”

Gier said Schrock’s absence is a setback to the team.   “But like coach said we got a number of excellent players in our squad.” /inquirer