Filipinas eye 2nd win vs Cambodia

The Philippine national women’s football team guns for a second straight win as it faces host Cambodia in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup qualifiers at the National Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh.

Kick-off will be at 8 p.m. (Manila time) as the Filipinas look to tighten their grip on the top spot of Group G.

The Philippines is coming off an emphatic 3-0 win over lowly Saudi Arabia last Sunday, thanks to goals from Jacklyn Sawicki (16th minute), Meryll Serrano (55th) and Alexa Pino (81st).

Meanwhile, the Cambodians settled for a 1-1 draw against Hong Kong over the weekend.

Like the Filipinas’ previous match against the Saudis, they are expected to steamroll the opposition despite the Cambodians having the support of the home crowd.

For Pino, who was named Player of the Match in the previous game, said they will need to continue with their ball movement and improve their finishing in front of the goal when they face the Cambodians.

Only the top team of the eight groups will get a spot in next year’s Asian Cup in Australia, making each game a must-win for all of the squads.

“I think we played very well. There were a couple of times we all could have executed a little better on finishing,” Pino said.

“Our movement off and on the ball was very good, and we opened up spaces on the wing in the middle, and it was overall just very good.”