Twenty-three players will hold the hopes of the country as coach Thomas Dooley picked his side to compete in the last phase of the 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers next week in Mongolia.
German Bundesliga standout Gerrit Holtmann made the cut while the likes of goalkeeper Neil Etheridge, defenders Jefferson Tabinas and Simone Rota, midfielders Manuel and Mike Ott, and forward Bienvenido Maranon will return as the Philippine Azkals look to finish business against Yemen, Mongolia, and Palestine.
Kevin Hansen and Anthony Pinthus are the other goalkeepers on call. The other defenders in the side include Miguel Mendoza, Jesse Curran, Mar Vincent Diano, Daisuke Sato, Amani Aguinaldo, and Dennis Villanueva.
In midfield, Sandro Reyes, OJ Porteria, Jhan-Jhan Melliza, Dylan de Bruycker, Oliver Bias, and Patrick Reichelt will compete for spots in the middle of the pitch.
When it comes to the forwards, Kenshiro Daniels and Mark Hartmann will compete to become the focal point of the attack.
The Azkals start their Group B campaign against Yemen on Wednesday and will go up against Mongolia and Palestine on Saturday and Tuesday respectively.
Dooley’s men need to top the group or finish as one of the five best second placers to make it to the next Asian Cup.
