Palami wants Azkals to be the best in Asia

The Philippine Azkals have gone a long way since their inception several years ago.

On September 2006 the country fell to 195th on the Fifa World Rankings, its lowest ever. Because of the Azkals program the country has climbed to 147th, its highest ever ranking, as of October, 2012.

From No. 33 in Asia the country is now No. 22 and most importantly the Philippines is now the No. 3 team in Southeast Asia behind only Thailand and Vietnam.

The Azkals have made huge strides. But according to Azkals team manager Dan Palami, the 42-year-old businessman from Tacloban who started bankrolling the national team two years ago, the best is yet to come because apparently they have loftier goals than just ruling the Southeast Asian arena.

“We hope to become number one in Southeast Asia by the end of the year. After Southeast Asia, we’ll set our sights on Asia. We’ll just try to make it one (goal) at a time,” he said.

The Azkals have indeed arrived. But because they’ve established their credibility the tradeoff is that opposing teams now scout more and prepare much harder before they play against the Azkals.

“Our neighbors no longer consider us underdogs. We have to live up to expectations not only for our fans here in the Philippines, but also in the competitions. We’re no longer coming in as a surprise team. All the other teams are paying attention to us now,” said Palami.

Success has not come easy and problems abound and not just on the pitch. It is not a secret that the Azkals have been involved in a lot of issues and controversies several times. Palami is always there to take up the cudgels for his players.

“More than anybody else, I know the boys will never do such things to destroy the team. It was just that they were often misunderstood. Now I know they are more sensitive to what is happening to the team,” Palami said.

Palami said it was a difficult to handle a team in a sport that was not popular nationwide. He was aware that the entire country basked in the success of basketball and was not very fond of football. This did not deter the president of the Leyte Football Association who took on the challenge of managing the Azkals.

“Nobody wanted my job before, especially when the team kept on losing matches. But then somebody had to take the chance. So I took on the challenge. I’m finding out what I can do for the team,” Palami said.

Palami accepted the responsibility of handling the team and assembled a mixture of talent for the Azkals, getting the services of Aly Borromeo, Anton del Rosario, Chieffy Caligdong, Ian Araneta, and the Fil-foreign football players: the Younghusband brothers, Phil and James, Neil Ethridge and Robert Gier.

He then gathered several sponsors to supply and clothe the team. From then on, even though he had a day job as manager of his own company, Palami never turned his back on the Azkals.

“I’ll never forget how it was when we all started, when the players, myself and the management were all trying to build the dream. It’s nice to recall those moments and then you realize where you are now. You tell yourself that everything turned out well,” Palami said.

The team has matured according to its team manager. Right now it is preparing for the upcoming Suzuki Cup in Thailand this November 24.

The team’s development now can be compared to a grade-schooler who is ready to take on his high school life according to Palami.

“We are now about to graduate elementary. To improve we have been playing as a team against high school teams like Bahrain and Kuwait,” said Palami of the improved competition his team now has to face.

Azkals just had their 10-day training stint in the Middle East against Bahrain and Kuwait which according to the team manager, only shows that they’re on the right track.

“We are now ready to fight. I can see the progress of the team from before. We can see the quality of players that we have. Some members of team of 2010 are no longer here but we are thankful for their contribution,” said an optimistic Palami despite the Azkals 2-1 loss to Kuwait and the scoreless draw with Bahrain.

The following weeks will be tough for the Azkals. After losing the Younghusbands (who have since committed to return to the program) for a spell the team faces more uncertainty with players like Neil Ethridge, Roland Muller, Stephan Schrock and Angel Guirado possibly missing more games.

Despite the handicap, the Azkals are hoping to reach a whole new level when they see action in the Asean region’s premier football competition. They will play in the 2012 AFF Cup, also known as the 2012 AFF Suzuki Cup. This will be the ninth edition of the Asean Football Championship, the football championship of Southeast Asia which will be co-hosted by Malaysia and Thailand and will be held Nov. 24 to Dec. 12, 2012.

However, if the past few years have shown anything it is that Dan Palami has a sound program in the Azkals who have improved consistently through the years and that aspiring to be the best football team in Asia is not just an empty pipe dream but an achievable, realistic objective to aspire for.

source: manilastandardtoday.com