Interim coach Norman Fegidero believed the Philippine men's national football team could have had a chance of closing the match vs Malaysia in the Merdeka Cup, if not for what he claimed were non-calls.
Host Malaysia handed the Philippine men's national football team (PMNFT) a heartbreaker of a loss, 2-1, to start the Merdeka Cup on Wednesday.
But interim coach Norman Fegidero believes there could have been more chances for the Philippines.
"I am very proud of my players. We put a very good fight until the last whistle," he said after the match.
"[But there are] other things that we can't control. [We're] supposed to have two penalties in this game. What can I do?" he shrugged. "It's the referees' call. I'm very disappointed in what happened."
"But I'm proud of my players. They played a very good game."
It's been a rough week for the PMNFT.
Less than a week before the Merdeka Cup, the squad lost its head coach Tom Saintfiet--who accepted a job for Mali.
[ALSO READ: Philippine men's national football team in search of new head coach after sudden departure of Tom Saintfiet]
Norman Fegidero returned to the post, alongside Philippine Women's National Team head coach Mark Torcaso alongside Andrew Durante, Sinisha Cohadzic, and Garrath McPherson.
They pretty much only had one full training day, after changing lineups multiple times due to injuries.
[ALSO READ: “We’ll give them a good fight”: Interim Coach Fegidero brings Philippine football team up to the challenge in Merdeka Cup]
Online viewers though got a treat upon seeing a lone fan bearing a Philippine scarf against a noisy Malaysian home crowd.
Malaysia got the first crack at the goal with a free kick at the penalty area at the 25th minute.
A few seconds later, Bjorn Kristensen went on the attack on the other side and was blocked by three to four yellow shirts. Dylan Demuynck picked it up for Justin Baas, who sent the ball to the far left side for Jeff Tabinas.
From there, the Tokyo-born defender went for the cross. Malaysia's Feroz Baharudin got his hand on the ball, but it managed to slip past the goalkeeper for the 27th minute Philippine goal.
Malaysia though managed to even things up before halftime via a corner, with Syamer Kutty sending a missile past Neil Etheridge in the 43rd minute.
The host got another easy shot at the goal via penalty at the 73rd minute, when Matthew Baldisimo was called for lunging at a Malaysian player.
Safawi Rasid took the penalty, his 22nd international goal for Malaysia.
It got more heated and physical at the 77th minute, when Paul Tabinas was tackled by Arif Aiman. He stood up and bumped his chest against the Malaysian, who immediately fell down, and rolled around while touching his face.
A group of yellow shirts then crowded Tabinas, and pushed him in confrontation. The referee eventually awarded Tabinas a yellow card.
Later, Jeremiah Borlongan got in for his international debut in the 81st minute, but was tackled and drew a foul from Malaysia. He nearly gave the Philippines a draw during injury time, but it just dropped in front of the goalkeeper.
Filipino fans though were not happy with what they claimed was a non-call during the 84th minute.
Sandro Reyes was going for the free kick when he was tackled by Safawi from the back.
"They're being ignored by the referees," the commentator noted. "For the second time, the Philippines had a good shot at a penalty. For the second time, it's not coming their way."
The Philippines would still have a shot at the podium when they take on defending champion Tajikistan in the battle for third on Sunday, September 8.
The match will be aired on the PMNFT Facebook page.