Amid an intense atmosphere at the UP Diliman Football Stadium, Ateneo de Manila University held on for a narrow 1-0 victory against University of the Philippines in the UAAP Season 86 Men’s Football Tournament on Sunday.
Blue Eagles captain Jose Antonio Lopez scored the only goal in the 50th minute off a rebound.
Striker Kofi Agyei saw his initial attempt saved by Fighting Maroons goalkeeper Alfonso Gonzalez during a corner kick.
It was an impressive defensive performance from last season’s finalist.
Ateneo’s reward was first place in the standings after this week’s matches with 10 points and a plus-4 goal difference behind three wins, one loss, and one draw.
‘It’s amazing when it’s an excellent performance from the players,” said coach JP Merida. “UP played really well. They controlled the first 20 minutes.
“The good thing was because of the discipline of my team, we held on for those 20 minutes. After that, we controlled the last 15 minutes of the first half.
“Going into the second half, if there’s a chance for us to win this game, we needed to capitalize on all the chances from set-pieces. And yun yung nangyari,” he added.
While the Blue Eagles held on for their dear lives, the Fighting Maroons were wasteful in front of goal. Francis and Florenz Tacardon, skipper Marc Tobias, and substitute Jan Caraig all had chances to equalize but none found the back of the net.
Jethro Flores could have given Ateneo an extra goal, but his attempt hit the post.
Nevertheless, it was the Blue Eagles who ruled round one of this season’s Battle of Katipunan.
Ateneo will try to end the first round on a high note against archrival De La Salle University this Sunday at 7:00 PM at the same venue.
“Playing against DLSU is always a battle of pride. We have seven days to prepare sa kung ano yung pwede naming gawin. Hopefully, some of the players can recover so they can be ready for La Salle,” said Merida.
On the other hand, UP suffered its second defeat this season and fell to fifth place in the standings with six points.
The Fighting Maroons will target a bounce-back win against the UE Red Warriors this Thursday at 4:30 PM on its home pitch.
Ateneo XI: Cezar (GK), Flores, Santilices, Dela Cruz, Agyei, Maquiling, F Roxas, Lopez (C), Fernandez, M Roxas, Bautista.
UP XI: Gonzalez (GK), Bongolan, Lobitaña, Tobias (C), Pagdanganan, FA Tacardon, Parpan, FC Tacardon, Lampayan, Bode, Bation III.
