More than 10,000 fans watched the match.
The Philippine Azkals on Thursday absorbed a 2-0 loss to Vietnam to start the second round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
It was a tough defeat in front of a 10,378-strong crowd at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila.
Coach Michael Weiss drew plenty of positives from the match, but he also admitted that they have be better in their upcoming games in the tournament, which also serves as a qualifier for the 2027 Asian Cup.
A few moments after the match, Jarvey Gayoso, who was cut from the Azkals' 26-man roster, took to X, formerly Twitter, to post a strong message.
"Will always be ready for you," he wrote, along with an emoji of the Philippine flag.
The 26-year-old Gayoso netted a goal last June in the Azkals' 1-0 win against Nepal in a friendly.
While he didn't make the cut for the FIFA World Cup qualifiers, there's plenty of chances for the two-time UAAP MVP to still prove his worth with four remaining windows all the way to June 2024.
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The Azkals will next take on Indonesia on Tuesday.
(PM)