Blue Eagles Gain Invaluable International Experience in Asian University Football Championship
by Chino D. Reyes • Published 30 October, 2017 at 8:13 AM
LOOKING to garner more silverware and experience after taking the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 79 Football Championship, the Blue Eagles flew to Taebaek, South Korea to participate in the fourth Asian University Football Tournament from September 18 to 28.
Arranged and hosted by the Asian University Football Federation (AUFF), the University-specific arm of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), the tournament followed a group stage format with two groups of five teams each. After playing each team in the group once, the top teams of each group advanced to the finals while the second-placed teams in each group played for third place. The Blue Eagles were pitted against university teams from Korea, Japan, Iran, and Taiwan in Group B.
Having claimed the UAAP title last season, the Ateneo Men’s Football Team (AMFT) was the only university team from the Philippines to qualify for the prestigious invitational tournament. Multiple teams, however, from Korea, Japan, and Iran, composed of individually selected players from different universities, played in the competition.
Given the international experience of many of the teams within their group, AMFT Coach Jaypee Merida chose to deploy a similar side to their UAAP-winning lineup, making use of their favored 3-5-2 formation, but with a more defensive look.
Despite playing to their strengths, the Blue and White suffered a series of harsh defeats, losing to Japan B (0-12), Korea B (0-7), and Iran (1-4). The sole consolation of the tournament for the Blue Eagles was a hard-fought 1-1 draw against Taiwan.
Regardless of a rough set of results, the team was upbeat about the opportunity to experience top quality Asian competition. “It’s always good exposure to play in international tournaments, especially this tournament. We know that we won UAAP last year, but this tournament helped us to see what level we need to keep on striving for,” says Captain Julian Roxas.
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