Coach Cuadrat Treats ASEAN Championship Exit as Valuable Learning Experience for Philippine Football
Key Takeaways
- •The Philippines won only one of four Group B matches, a 4-1 victory over Laos, and finished fourth in the standings with three points.
- •Thailand secured the group title with a perfect twelve points from four wins, while Malaysia placed second with nine points to advance to the semifinals.
- •Head coach Carles Cuadrat used the tournament to evaluate younger and newer players, describing the campaign as an important developmental opportunity.
- •Cuadrat identified winger Kenji Nishioka and U19 standout Cole Mrowka as promising talents who benefited from the international exposure.
- •The coach stated that the FIFA tournament, when all players are available, will serve as the team's true competitive benchmark going forward.
Philippine national football team head coach Carles Cuadrat has described the country's campaign in the ASEAN Championship–Hyundai Cup as a "learning experience," despite the squad's inability to progress past the group stage and reach the semifinals.
Mr. Cuadrat's youth-laden roster managed just one victory in Group B — a 4-1 triumph over Laos. That result, however, was offset by a 1-4 defeat at the hands of Myanmar on home soil, along with back-to-back 0-1 losses to former regional champions Thailand and Malaysia.
The Philippines finished fourth in the group standings with three points, placing only ahead of winless Laos. Group winner Thailand secured a perfect 12 points across four victories, while second-placed Malaysia earned nine points from three wins and one loss. Both advanced to the crossover Final Four.
"The last two games against Thailand and Malaysia have been challenging tests for the players involved, and they showed that they can be competitive against strong teams," Mr. Cuadrat said.
"We have been taking advantage of these four games, plus the two games in June, to see new players, and I'm positive because we have discovered new soldiers for the future."
The ASEAN Championship, formerly known as the AFF Suzuki Cup, is the premier international football competition for Southeast Asian nations, organized by the ASEAN Football Federation. The tournament features national teams from across the region competing in a group stage followed by knockout rounds. For the Philippines, which has historically trailed traditional regional powers such as Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia in football, the competition serves as a key measuring stick for the program's development against more established Southeast Asian sides.
Mr. Cuadrat emphasized that the experience bodes well for the team's younger players, singling out winger Kenji Nishioka and U19 standout Cole Mrowka as talents who stand to benefit from the exposure as the program moves forward.
"The tournament has been exhausting, with so much travel and games played every three days, but we have to see the good things because although we didn't qualify, players learned a lot from these games," he said.
"Our real test will be in the FIFA tournament, when we can bring all the players, and I'm happy that we have been able to test new faces for the national team."
— Olmin Leyba
