Azkals eager to play at home, take on Nepal in international friendly

The Philippine Azkals are looking forward to playing at home when they host Nepal in an international friendly at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex on October 11. The Philippines will be playing its first FIFA-sanctioned friendly in 14 years and members of the Azkals are pumped up to make their mark in their 7 p.m. match against Nepal. The Azkals’ last game at home was in July when they lost to Kuwait, 3-1, in an Asian World Cup qualifier so it’s another reason for them to go all out for the win. Based on the latest FIFA world rankings, Nepal is the favored team in the friendly match as it is ranked 135th in the world while the Philippines is ranked 166th. Team manager Dan Palami said that the team will be relying on the home crowd against Nepal as the Azkals hope to get the win after a 0-2 loss to Singapore in an international friendly last Friday. "We can't allow Nepal to come here and dominate," Palami said. “We are not the favored team so we are hopeful that we would get all the support at Rizal." For his part, Fil-Danish standout Dennis Cagara is upbeat about his home debut and hope to contribute against Nepal. “Most of my teammates have shared their stories on how the feeling was playing at Rizal Memorial so I’m really looking forward to it," said Cagara, who missed the World Cup qualifiers due to his commitment with his Danish squad. The Azkals will get a big boost on defense as Rob Gier will be making his return to the team after missing the Long Teng Cup. Prior to the Singapore friendly, the Philippines competed in the Long Teng Cup in Chinese Taipei accumulating a win and two draws during the tournament. "We've been playing many games overseas. I’m just happy that we have the support of the Filipinos wherever we play. But it’s still a different feeling playing at Rizal," said co-team captain Chieffy Caligdong. - OMG, GMA News