Weiss sees both the good and the bad after Azkals' friendly.
The Philippine men’s national football team gave returning coach Hans Michael Weiss a rousing welcome, beating Nepal 1-0 in a friendly held on Thursday at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
Star left winger Jarvey Gayoso scored the only goal of the match at the 49th minute, while goalkeeper Patrick Deyto worked a clean sheet for the Azkals, who are banking on Weiss to turn around a program that has struggled as of late.
But if that is to happen, Gayoso and company will need to get in tip-top shape—or at least better than the shape they are in based on Weiss’ assessment.
“For the performance in general, you could see they came from the holidays. They weren’t in good shape,” Weiss told the media after the Azkal’s victory. “If this is the case, you cannot put into reality what you actually want. It’s just not realistic.”
Weiss doubled down on his blunt assessment, even attributing the win to some good luck.
“We could see that today [players not being in game shape]. So, we’re lucky. For some periods, we can keep the ball well, but with the time running down it’s getting worse and worse,” added Weiss.
Nevertheless, Weiss remains upbeat about the team he has inherited.
“I can see all of the players, they matured a lot,” the German tactician noted. “Unfortunately now, they’re not in the best condition. But I think the potential is really there. I’m very positive for the future.”
Now, if there is one man who can help the Azkals realize that potential, then that would be Weiss, whose time with the Azkals from 2011 to 2014 saw the national team climb 127 in the world—its highest position in the FIFA World Rankings ever.