THE Philippine women’s football team defeated United Arab Emirates, 4-1, in its first friendly of 2025 in Dubai on Friday night.
Chandler McDaniel scored a brace in the first of a pair of friendlies between UAE during the April FIFA window.
Hali Long opened scoring in the eighth minute before McDaniel doubled the lead in the 19th minute. After Meryll Serrano scored in the 30th, McDaniel, the Stallion Laguna FC striker, scored four minutes later.
With the result already in the bag, PWNT coach Mark Torcaso gave opportunities to several players with 21-year-old midfielder Paige McSwigan and Kent State University defender Aliana Weibel, 19, making her Filipinas debut.
“That we were able to implement the playing style was very important to us,” said Torcaso.
“This was our first official international match of the year, so it was important for us to score goals, but also to build the playing style.
Busy year for Filipinas
The Filipinas are preparing for a busy year as they compete in the Asian Cup qualifiers during the coming international windows, AFF Women’s Championship, and the Southeast Asian Games in December.
“All four of our goals were scored with the way we want to play, so now it’s about building that into the next game, the next window, and then the Asian Cup Qualifiers,” said Torcaso.
The Philippines will battle UAE again on April 8, with the team continuing to train and build-up in the coming days.
“The second game will be harder because now they know how we play. But it’s important for us to have that challenge. It’s been a great game, it’s been a great couple of days, and we’re looking forward to the second game and getting another good result,” said Torcaso.
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