THE semifinal match between the Philippines and South Korea during the AFC Women’s Asia Cup campaign was definitely a wake up call for the Malditas.
It was the same sequence over and over again: The Malditas gained possession, struggled to break defenses, while the Koreans toyed with us for 90 minutes.
We still have many things to learn with regards to the beautiful game of football.
For instance, let’s take a deeper look at how the Koreans played with the ball against the Malditas and compare it to our performances against Chinese Taipei.
What’s common about these two matches is that one team was able to dominate possession. The Philippines boasted a 60 percent possession during the first half, while our match against Korea featured a walloping 77% possession for the Asian football powerhouse.
But there was one major difference. During our match against Chinese Taipei, we struggled to break their compact defensive shape. Contrast that to our battle against South Korea, where the latter literally forced our national team to scramble and break our defensive lines.
Without letting our national pride get in our way, it was clearly evident that the South Korean squad had a better system in moving the ball and watching them play showed some sense of flawlessness.
Assessing how South Korea broke down the Malditas defense
How were the Koreans able to cause havoc on our defensive shape? To compare it to from teams in the European scene, a proper switch is key to breaking an opposition’s defense — and that’s exactly what they did.
They could try to weave their way on the right side of the pitch, and in case the Philippines would instantly lock down that area, they would instantly look for loopholes and move the ball on the opposite side, and capitalize on potential 1-v-1 opportunities.
And as they moved the ball, the Malditas tried to harass the opposition, but with KOR's high technical ability and footballing IQ, the Filipinos tended to expose themselves.
Compare that to how we played against Chinese Taipei, in which I noticed that there was a huge hole on the flanks when we executed our possession game. While we tried to keep the ball on the right side of the field, there was no one placed on the left side.
This could explain why we struggled to break the Taiwanese defense, as we were dead set on pushing the ball forward without having someone on the opposite flank who could force Chinese Taipei to potentially alter their defensive stance, and create spaces.
What this means for the Malditas
Indeed the loss against South Korea certainly revealed the realities that the Malditas will have to endure in their upcoming World Cup campaign.
And it was definitely an important experience where Coach Alen Stajcic and the rest of the crew could reflect upon, to learn more about what needs to be done.
But given what the Philippines has displayed in the AFC tournament, I believe this team is capable of potentially surprising their foes once the World Cup begins.
In fact, Cedelf Tupas, Philippine Football Federation media officer, said it perfectly during a Spin.ph Zoom In episode: “I haven’t seen them play at their really best pa. May potential pa yung team na maging better.”
Fellow episode guest Natasha Alquiros of the PH Women’s Football Association agreed, expressing her confidence in Coach Alen’s coaching. He knows the prowess of this team, explained Alquiros as she outlined why his players are deployed across multiple positions, which in turn creates a huge level of unpredictability in his system.
Stajcic has revolutionized the scene, even though he only started last October 2021.
Based on what we’ve witnessed, we’re definitely hoping that Coach Alen stays for the long run, where he could monitor the team’s overall progress.
After all, this is a promising beginning which could leapfrog into something bigger. And nothing can take away from their historic achievement of booking that ticket into the World Cup.
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