PHILIPPINES’ SUCCESS A RESULT OF HARD WORK: STAJCIC

Head coach Alen Stajcic was ecstatic after the Philippines’ confirmed their spot in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup India 2022 semi-finals for the first time, following their win over Chinese Taipei on Sunday.

There was double celebration as the win meant Stajcic and his charges made more history for the Philippines by clinching a ticket to their maiden FIFA Women’s World Cup, where they will compete against the best in Australia/New Zealand 2023. A dominant Philippines broke the deadlock 49 minutes into the match through Quinley Quezada’s close range strike, but a determined Chinese Taipei pushed the game into extra time through Zhuo Li-Ping’s wonder goal.

Both teams, however, were unable to seal the game in extra time, and heroics from Philippines goalkeeper Olivia McDaniels helped the Southeast Asians emerge 4-3 winners on penalties. “They (Chinese Taipei) were chasing the game, and I think we lost our composure a little bit and let them back into the game, which was disappointing from a tactical perspective,” Stajcic admitted.

“But on a night like this, who really cares. We can analyse every moment, but that’s not the big picture. The big picture is the whole journey to get here. We played six halves of football and conceded only in two different halves, so that’s amazing and testimony to not only Olivia but the whole team as a unit. We’ve really shown we can compete against some of the best teams in the world defensively.”

It’s an incredible achievement for the Philippines but the 48-year-old Australian wasn’t taking any of the recognition, crediting the years of unseen work by countless individuals.

“It’s all a testament of the hard work that’s been done by everyone. Hopefully, I’ve helped in adding value as we’ve worked really hard as a group, but for this to happen, it doesn’t happen overnight. Full credit to the whole country, the PFF (Philippine Football Federation) and everyone who has put in the effort to any one of these players over time,” the coach said.

While their India 2022 campaign is still not over with a semi-final date against the Korea Republic on Thursday, Stajcic wants his side to first fully embrace their achievement.