The Philippine national football team, Philippine Azkals stunned the powerhouse football team, North Korea with a 3-2 victory in the hotly-contested World Cup Qualifier. The Azkals delivered a very impressive performance worthy to be called magnificent football game as they toppled a nation that played in the World Cup just six years ago.
During the Tuesday night’s game at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila, the Azkals showcased their hard-nosed, no-nonsense defending with a flair rarely seen on their attack and scored two goals in the last 10 minutes of the game to shocked the visiting North Korean team.
Filipino-Australian footballer Iain Ramsay scored the winning goal in the 90th minute after Manny Ott and Misagh Bahadoran scored the first two goals for the Azkals, while Fil-British goalkeeper Neil Etheridge blocked offensive attacked of the North Korean. The Philippine Azkals scored their third victory in the World Cup Qualifier and finished the competition with 10 points.
Although the Philippine Azkals will miss out on the World Cup after a poor run of results, their victory over the North Koreans is a clear indications that the Philippines is a team to beat in the 24-nation Asian Cup which will be held in 2019. The Philippines is third in ranking just behind the league leader North Korea and Uzbekistan.
The North Koreans, considered as the top teams in the World Cup Qualifier will marched to the next round of the World Cup Qualifier while the remaining teams will try to enter the 24-nation Asian Cup in 2019.
