The Philippine Under-22 Men’s National Football Team will rely on familiarity and chemistry to make waves in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games hosted by Cambodia.
Coach Rob Gier’s final lineup for the regional games consists of players who are part of the Azkals Development Team in the 2022-2023 Philippines Football League.
(C) PFL
Players like Quincy Kammeraad, Kamil Amirul, Daniel Christensen, Dennis Chung, Andres Aldeguer, Justin Frias, Yrick Gallantes, Gavin Muens, Jaime Sacopon, Pocholo Bugas, David Setters, John Lucero, and Harry Nunez are part of the team.
Dov Cariño and Enrico Mangaoang, who also represent Ateneo de Manila University and De La Salle University, respectively, in the UAAP Season 85 Men’s Football Tournament, also made the cut.
Santiago Rublico, Jacob Pena, Noah Leddel, Carlo Dorin, and Matt Ocampo complete Gier’s squad.
The Philippines last entered the final four of the regional games back in 1991 when Manila was the host. The past edition saw the country win only one match, a 4-0 drubbing of Timor Leste, and suffer defeats at the hands of Myanmar and Indonesia.
This time around, Gier’s men are grouped with Indonesia, Myanmar, and Timor Leste for the second successive campaign in Group A. Host nation Cambodia will also join them.
Gier and the Azkals U22 will open their campaign against Indonesia tomorrow at the Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh with a kickoff time of 5:00 p.m. Manila time.
