By: Icko De Guzman
Heading into the home leg of their back-to-back fixtures against Timor-Leste, the Philippine Men’s National Team head coach Carles Cuadrat knew that nothing less than a win would keep their hopes of qualifying for the AFC Asian Cup 2027 alive.
But unlike last week’s comfortable victory, the Philippines had to dig deep this time.
Joao Rangel opened the scoring for Timor-Leste with a curling effort, forcing the home side to chase the game at the New Clark City Stadium on Tuesday night.
“It was really a bad first half for us,” admitted Cuadrat after the match.
“I am very happy because there was a reaction from the team and they came out with a different mentality in the second half.”
The PMNFT responded almost immediately after the restart.
Jefferson Tabinas headed home the equalizer just seconds into the second half off a Michael Kempter corner kick.
(C) PFF
Bjorn Kristensen then put the hosts in front in the 70th minute with his eighth goal of the qualifiers, before Jarvey Gayoso sealed the comeback with a late insurance strike in the 90th minute.
The quick turnaround allowed the Philippines to regain control of the match and ultimately secure all three points.
“We are working very well on set-pieces and creating really good chances from them,” Cuadrat added.
“We took advantage of what we’ve been doing in training, and after the equalizer, we started to take control of the game.”
The back-to-back wins over Timor-Leste not only kept the Philippines’ hopes of a second Asian Cup appearance alive, but also served as a fitting send-off for the home fans.
The PMNFT will now conclude their qualifying campaign on the road, facing the Maldives in November and Tajikistan in March next year.
“It was a crucial game, and being at home, we had to get the result. I think we deserved the three points in the end,” Cuadrat concluded.
#WATCH: Head coach Carles Cuadrat and Bjørn Kristensen share their thoughts on the Philippines’ comeback win over Timor-Leste that sent them to the top of Group A! 🇵🇭⚽#ReadMore 👉 https://t.co/PUi8CA9m3E
📹 @ickodeg /Tiebreaker Times#ACQ2027 #LabanPilipinas pic.twitter.com/QFoWlpmyzP
— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) October 14, 2025
