Azkals Current Team Player: Misagh Bahadoran

Name: Misagh Medina Bahadoran 
Age: 24
Birthday: January 10, 1987
Birthplace: Mabalacat, Pampanga
Position in the Azkals team: Left/ Right wing
Start of football career: He's been playing since he was 7



For Azkals striker Misagh Bahadoran, school was his key to get into football.

The 24-year-old Filipino-Iranian said he had to prioritize his studies before he could get his father's permission to join the national team.

"They invited me to join the Philippine football team but because my fist priority was my school and college, my dad did not allow me to go," said Bahadoran.

With years of hard work in school, he earned his college degree and was finally allowed to join the Azkals.

"I just graduated as a dentist from the Centro Escolar University," said a beaming Bahadoran. "He (his father) then allowed me to play football."

Bahadoran maintained a good relationship with football ever since he was a boy.

"My brother was a very good football player. I used to play football with him so I've loved football back when I was 5, 6 years old," he said.

Now that he fulfilled his father's wishes, he's glad to fulfill his own.

"My parents are happy with what I'm doing," he said.

Where's your mother/father from?My mom is Kapampangan. She's a Filipino and my dad is Iranian.


What leagues have you played in?I played for Kaya FC, after that I went to Global FC. I'm also a national futsal player since 2006 and I was 2-time top scorer of Southeast Asia. We also qualified in AFC in Japan.


What made you decide to join the team?I wanted to try Philippine football team which before was not Azkals in 2007. They invited me to join the Philippine football team but because my fist priority was my school and college, my dad did not allow me to go. But I just graduated as a dentist from the Centro Escolar University. He then allowed me to play football. They invited me, Dan Palami, manager of Global FC, same manager of the Azkals.


What's your pet peeve? What's the thing that you hate the most?When my dad or my parents keep on asking me 'Where are you? What are you doing? Why are you late?' I hate that.


What's the best thing you like about football?The thing I really love about football is the challenge and the winning because when we win, I really love it. People are screaming and my parents are happy with what I'm doing.

source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/06/23/11/azkals-close-misagh-bahadoran

Azkals Current Team Player: Neil Etheridge

Name: Neil Leonard Etheridge
Age: 21
Birthday: February 7, 1990
Birthplace: London
Position in the Azkals team: Goalkeeper




Azkals goalkeeper Neil Etheridge has the same passion for football similar to what his kababayans in the Philippines have for basketball.

Like most of his countrymen in England, the Filipino-British football player started his interest in football early on.

“In England, football is the biggest sport without a doubt. I started playing football at quite a young age as well… I used to play for local teams and I got picked up for Chelsea at the age of 12,” he told abs-cbnNEWS.com.

Etheridge initially regarded the sport only as a “fun game” until he reached 15.

Around that time, he began started taking football seriously. “It started to come more of a job,” he said.

At 18, he received an invitation to join the Philippine national team. As others would say, the rest was history.

Now at 21, Etheridge couldn’t ask for more being one of the most esteemed, not to mention the most swooned-upon, members of the Azkals.

What do you love most about football? 
I guess the fans, that passion about the game, glory—there are ups and downs and everything. For me, football is a job and you go to work every day and enjoy your job. Not too many people get to do that. I’m quite fortunate in that respect.

What’s your most memorable game so far? 
If I could pinpoint one, I think coming home to Bacolod, playing for the Philippines (against Mongolia) last March. It’s obviously a big game for everyone. You know, playing in front of the home crowd. There was so much expectation around us.
And of course, playing in the (ASEAN Football Federation Cup) semifinals against Indonesia in front of such a big crowd in such a widely-watched (event). We beat Vietnam, the host of the competition. We did so well, it was so unexpected for us to even get that far… That was very great for us.

What can you say about the Azkals’ popularity now? 
“We came from, two years ago, not being known, always playing away from home and never having support, never having funds, with no endorsements. Now, we’re getting everything at once. At first, it was hard for us to adapt but now, we have adapted and settled down.”

source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/06/25/11/azkals-close-neil-etheridge

Azkals Current Team Player: Jason Sabio

Name: Jason Abbott Abantao Sabio

Age: 24
Birthday: June 30, 1986
Birthplace: Manila
Position in the Azkals team: Defender
Start of football career: Started playing football at age 11

An athlete by heart and a self-confessed Twitter addict – that's how one can describe the Philippine Azkals' Jason Sabio.

Sabio revealed that he has always been an athletic guy and one can imagine him playing any sport.

Despite this, he fell in love with football the most.

“I started playing football with my best friend in middle school in the States in Alabama,” he said.

Sabio was raised in the United States but his parents are both from the Philippines.

At the peak of the Azkals’ fame, Sabio sat down with abs-cbnNEWS.com and shared things about his personal life and his moments as a member of Philippine National Football team.

What made you decide to join the Azkals?
I‘ve always wanted to represent the country, my birth country and I thought it would be an opportunity because I love soccer, I love football, I love Filipinos.


If you weren't a football player what would you like to have been?
Actually after I’m done with my football career, I’m one year away from finishing law school so I’m going to be a lawyer.


What’s the best you like about football?
The best thing about it is it’s a team sport. It’s not just individual so you must work together and you’re only as strong as your weakest link so you have to try to help each other achieve your success.


http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/06/18/11/azkals-close-jason-sabio

Meet the team who made Philippines proud!

Our Philippine National Football Team - AZKALS


The latest craze in town isn't basketball and boxing anymore. Football has added to the taste of every Filipino fan. Before when we say Philippines, its definitely boxing or Manny Pacquiao.  Well, not now that football came. These handsome sportsmen have added supreme taste to the masses. 


Philippine football has long been in the country. It was just recently being made famous because of Azkals' victory over Vietnam last December 2010 on a Suzuki Cup. 


Right now, they are fighting for every game over different countries. Vietname, Bahrain, Kuwait, Mongolia and a lot more. Are you not proud how these men came from without to having much? 




Let us support Azkals.
Support Team Philippines!

Azkals Current Team Player: Phil Younghusband

Name: Philip James Placer Younghusband
Nickname: Phil
Age: 23
Birthday: August 4, 1987
Birthplace: London

 It was 20 years ago when Phil Younghusband started playing football. His father taught him and his brother, James, the sport as “an excuse to use energy and run around.”

“My dad encouraged us to play. He’d bring me and my brother down to the park,” the 23-year-old striker said in an interview with abs-cbnNEWS.com.

Younghusband's love for football flourished since then. “When I turn the TV on, it would be a football game, and there was always my idol David Beckham,” the Filipino-British said.

Little did he know that he would become one of the most sought after football stars in the Philippine national football team.

Just like the Azkals, who surged to popularity after the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup and the AFC Challenge Cup group stage, Younghusband became an overnight sensation.

From then on, like any popular sports figure, Younghusband paved his own way to show business.

He has been guesting in TV shows and events, modeling for magazine covers and endorsing top products such as Collezione C2 and Blackberry Messenger. He also became one of the hottest items in the gossip world.

Younghusband, however, said, “it’s just being in the right place and in the right time.”

The Azkals heartthrob said that deep down, amidst the attention and adulation he has been receiving, football will remain to be his passion.

“You start thinking if this as your profession, and you work hard as good as you can be. And lucky for me and James, we were able to learn one of the biggest [sport] in the world,” he said.



What’s your most football memorable game so far?
The one in Bacolod (against Mongolia). It was in front of Filipino fans. It was so dramatic.

What’s the best thing about football?
I think it’s the fact that it has everything. It has controversy. It has drama, action. There’s no wrong or right and that’s the good thing about football. You can express yourself. In basketball, or in American football, the coach will tell you the (game play). Here in football, you are free to express yourself and do what you want.

What other sport/s do you play?
Tennis. I’d be like Roger Federer, a tennis player of something.

What would you have been doing if not football?
My dad is a senior accountant in London and I have a Mathematics degree… I’m good in Math. I will probably follow my dad’s footsteps and he was a partner in a company.

source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/06/25/11/azkals-close-phil-younghusband

Azkals Current Team Player: James Younghusband

Name: James Joseph Placer Younghusband
Nickname: James
Age: 24
Birthday: September 4, 1986
Birthplace: Ashford, Middlesex, England
Position in the Azkals team: Midfielder
Start of football career: Started playing since he was 4

As one of the most popular members of the Philippine Azkals, James Younghusband still cannot believe that more Filipinos appreciate football now more than ever.

In an interview with abs-cbnNEWS.com, Younghusband said he started playing football back when he was 4 years old.

"My dad, he brought us to a local football club, we (he and his brother Phil) played there every weekend," he said.

Younghusband revealed that he decided to join the Azkals because it is his pride to represent his mother’s homeland in international competitions.

The Azkals midfielder revealed that his mom is from Malabon City while his dad is from England.

In the interview, Younghusband revealed that he also has a creative side.

"[Without football] I think I’d probably be a graphics designer," the 24-year-old midfielder said.

What leagues have you played in?
Just in the Reserve League of England, most leagues are in England eh.


If you weren't a football player what would you like to have been?
Hmm, I think I’d probably be a graphics designer or maybe a graphics designer.


What was you're most memorable game?
Most memorable game? It has to be the one in Vietnam (AFF Suzuki Cup) when we beat them 2-0.


What’s one thing that you hate the most?
Traffic. I hate traffic!


What’s the best thing that you like about football?If you have any problems, you can play football and forget about them.

source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/06/25/11/azkals-close-james-younghusband

Azkals Current Team Player: Ian Araneta

Name: Ian Bayona Araneta
Nickname: Ian
Age: 29
Birthday: March 2, 1982
Birthplace: Iloilo 
Position in the Azkals team: Striker
Start of football career: Started playing football at the age of 6. Joined his first real game in Grade 4.

Azkals striker Ian Araneta can't imagine life without football. 

This is because the sport runs in the familiy.

“Football family talaga kami,” the 29-year-old Ilonggo told abs-cbnNEWS.com.

Araneta grew up playing the sport in Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo, the hotbed of Philippine football.

His father, a member of the Philippine National Football team in the '80s, introduced him to the world’s most popular sport. Even his grandfather and his uncles played football.

Araneta said this is the reason why the sport is deeply entrenched in his way of life.

“’Yun talaga, parang buhay ko na talaga ang football, hindi ko alam kung nasaan ako ngayon kundi sa football,” he said.

When asked what he would have been without football, he joked: “Baka basurero na 'ko.”

How did you get involved in football? 
Impluwensya ng tatay ko. Kasi tatay ko football player din, member din siya ng national team noong ‘80s. Tapos yun lagi niya akong dinadala sa game niya. Sa dugo na rin siguro kasi pamilya naming puro football player. Lolo ko naglalaro ng football, kapatid ng erpat ko.

How old were you when you first started to play?
Six years old. Pero nagstart akong sumali ng liga doon sa Milo Cup, Grade 4 ako, mga 10 years old.

What leagues have you competed in?
Sa local, lahat ata ng liga dito sa Manila sinalihan namin. Member ako ng Philippine Air Force sa UFL. Tapos sa NCR Champions League. Sa international naman, year 2000 ako nagstart sa Tiger Cup, Suzuki Cup… madami.

What made you decide to join the national team?
Kasi ako talaga, dati pa ang hilig ko talaga ay maglaro ng football. Yung goal ko talaga nung bata pa ako makalaro sa national team. Yun talaga, parang buhay ko na talaga ang football, hindi ko alam kung nasaan ako ngayon kundi sa football.

source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/06/15/11/azkals-close-ian-araneta

Azkals Current Team Player: Eduard Sacapaño

Name: Eduard Sacapaño
Age: 31
Birthday: February 14, 1980
Birthplace: Bacolod City
Position in the Azkals team: Goalkeeper
Start of football career: He began playing at age 13

Before becoming a reserve goalkeeper for the Philippine Azkals, Eduard Sacapaño only enjoyed football from the sidelines.

“Parang na-encourage ako na manood... Dati nun, kumukuha lang ako ng mga bola sa likod na lumalagpas. Kinukuha ko then binabalik ko sa kanila kasi ‘di pa ko marunong mag-football,” said Sacapaño.

His childhood friend encouraged him to try the game.

Sacapaño later joined the West Negros College varsity football team, where he took the role of a goalkeeper-- a part he would be playing for the next decade or so.
“Dati nga, ayoko ng goalkeeper kasi nakakatakot. Parang ang hirap ng responsibilidad,” confessed the Bacolod native.
He then joined the Philippine Army and became part of its team that saw action in the United Football League.
From there, he enlisted for the national team and became part of the Philippine Azkals in 2004.

What’s your most memorable game?'Yung naglaro kami last year sa (AFF) Suzuki Cup… First time naming natalo ang Vietnam, kasi ‘di talaga nananalo ang Pilipinas sa Vietnam. Natatalo lagi tayo ng Vietnam—tambak. Defending champion (ang Vietnam) tapos home court pa nila, so parang ‘yun ang pinakamemorable moment talaga. Andun lahat yung image na ‘di mo makakalimutan. Dun pumutok yung football natin dito... Na-encourage (kami) na ipakita sa atin na hinding-hindi tayo maliitin ng ganung team—na kaya nating makipagsabayan.

What would you be doing if you had not gotten into football?Sport pa rin, volleyball, basketball. Siguro sa office, sa trabaho.

What’s the best thing about football?Lahat andyan: ‘Yung physical endurance… Athletic talaga sa football, pati ulo mo gumagana.

What values have you learned in football?Camaraderie, yung pagsasamahan, Paano ka makisama sa mga kasama mo. Nakikita rin mga individual na ugali namin. Kami sa team, madali kaming mag adjust eh… Lalo na kaming matatanda sa team.

source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/06/18/11/azkals-close-eduard-sacapa%C3%B1o

Azkals Current Team Player: Anton del Rosario

Name: Anton Edwin del Rosario
Age: 29
Birthday: December 23, 1981
Born and raised in: San Francisco, California









Del Rosario started hitting the pitch at the age of 5. He said his family played a big role in influencing him to take up football.


“My dad used to play rugby and stuff like that… My mom was the one who was in love with soccer. My mom used to coach us when I was a kid,” he said.


Del Rosario added that his brother, former Philippine international booter Armand del Rosario, provided him added motivation to excel in the sport. He joined the Azkals team in 2004.




What do you love most about football?

The team sport. The physicality of it. You stay in great shape to be able to play it.


What other sport/s do you play?
When I was in the States, I always [played] recreationally American football. I played basketball recreationally sometimes… You name a sport and I like playing it.


What are your other interests and hobbies?
Going to the gym, [playing] poker.


source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/06/25/11/azkals-close-anton-del-rosario

Azkals Team Co-Captain: Chieffy Caligdong

Name: Emilio Caligdong 
Nickname: Chieffy
Age:  28
Birthday: Sept. 28, 1982
Birthplace: Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo 




The Philippine Azkals' “Chieffy” Caligdong is proof that you don’t need to be tall to do well in football.


At 5’5”, he outruns and outwits even the tallest defenders, and plays with a lot of heart and passion.


“S’yempre, hindi porke maliit ka, hindi mo kayang maglaro ng football,” the 28-year-old Azkals co-team captain told abs-cbnNEWS.com.


A veteran of international competitions, Caligdong has been with the Azkals in matches held in Southeast Asia, such as in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.


How did you get into football?
Sa encouragement ng brother ko. ‘Yung brother ko nagturo sakin matuto ng football. Mga 7 years old ako. Former team member siya ng UST.


What’s your most memorable game?
'Yung 2010, first time na nanalo ang Pilipinas. Ako ang naka-goal doon against Timor Leste. ‘Yun ang pinaka-best game ko, sa Tiger Cup 2010.


What would you be doing if you had not gotten into football? 
Commerce ang gusto kong kunin, so siguro management ang trabaho ‘ko.

Azkals Team Captain: Aly Borromeo

Name: Alexander Charles Luis Borromeo
Nickname: Aly
Age: 27
Birthplace: San Francisco, California. Raised in the Philippines
Birthday: June 28, 1983






Borromeo started hitting the pitch at 6 years old. But while growing up, he strayed away from football as he gained interest in other sports like basketball, tennis, golf, and athletics.


"Really all around," he told abs-cbnNEWS.com. "My grades were pretty bad but yeah."


That is, until the past months when Borromeo and his team attained success in the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Suzuki Cup and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Challenge Cup.


When and how did you start playing for the Azkals?
Actually it's funny because in the first games, I wasn't captain yet. I accidentally injured my old teammate. I hit him on the nose, broke his nose and I was given the captain post. (Laughing)


What's the best thing you like about football?
It's a different feeling when you score a goal. It's a team sport. Unity's involved, the equation. It's celebrating with others. I like making others feel good, making them happy since I joined the Azkals in 2004.


source:  http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/06/17/11/azkals-close-aly-borromeo

Azkals Team Manager: Dan Palami

Name: Dan Stephen Castillo Palami
Nickname: Dan
Birthday: June 9
Birthplace: Tacloban City








Back then, the Azkals were relatively unknown to casual sports fans. Sponsors were hard to find and the bulk of the team’s finances came from Palami’s pocket.


He became part of the Philippine Azkals in late 2009 when the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) asked him to manage the team.


“Nobody wanted the job… I mean nobody wanted to handle a team that was losing internationally so it was a losing proposition for somebody then,” remembered Palami.


“I just said that well, somebody has to take a chance, I grabbed it and see what I can do.”


He then took part in putting up a formidable national squad by bringing together the likes of Aly Borromeo, Anton del Rosario, Chieffy Caligdong, Ian Araneta, Phil and James Younghusband, Neil Etheridge and Robert Gier.


Palami’s support was not limited to managing the team’s funding. He made sure that the Azkals were properly taken care of by attending most of the team’s training sessions.


He did this while managing his company, a giant engineering firm engaged in the construction and maintenance of railway systems.


“I actually have a day job. My job is full time in football and full time with my company,” said Palami.


“I think 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,” he said.


“It was those moments that when you go back and you find yourself where you are right now... you tell yourself that everything turned out well.”

What’s the best thing you like about football?

Well, It’s everything... the whole team camaraderie, everything that happens before the game, after the game. It’s a good experience. Something that we don’t easily forget and when you go lie down on your bed and think about all the things that happened, you don’t have any regrets.

What is your comment on reports about some of the Azkals getting distracted by showbiz commitments?

I fully agree in the statement that focus should be given to the national team... But for as long as you show up and make good account of yourself on training, games and other official functions of the team then I don’t really mind."

Some Azkals are more popular than others... aren’t the rest of the team getting jealous over the attention received by their more popular team mates?

I don’t think so. It’s not about being the most popular players anyway. At the end of the day, as a manager, what matters is you build a team with team spirit and not just a collection of individuals. It doesn’t matter. Just make sure that work is shown.

source:  http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/06/24/11/azkals-close-team-manager-dan-palami

Azkals Team Coach: Michael Weiss

Coach: Michael Weiss
Age: 46
Birthplace: Germany
Birthday: March-11-1965
Started football when he was 8 years old.






According to Coach Weiss, football isn't merely a sport. Football is a challenge. With abs-cbnNews.com's interview, he was able to share some points on why he loves football.


“It looks easy but you imagine how many pieces of puzzles you have to bring together to have a very good team.”


Football demands not just physical endurance, he said, but also strength of mind. “In Germany, they call the mind the ‘third leg,’” said Weiss.
The interplay of these factors in each game makes the sport thrilling and exciting for Weiss.


It’s no wonder that the German coach stuck with football ever since he had his first training in the sport at a tender age of 8.


Weiss, who was described by German football officials as a highly knowledgeable and experienced coach, took over the Azkals coaching job early this year.


How did you get into this sport, football? 
I was 8 years old. Somebody took me to training and then I tried, I tried. And then from 8 years on I played until 32 years old and then I get into coaching.


I was 32 years old and I had a job in Japan in high school as a coach. I took the opportunity to leave Germany and then 2 years went back to Germany and then again 3 years in Japan. All together, 5 years in Japan. I like Japan very much.


What made you decide to join Azkals? 
I was one of the frontrunners for the job… they decided that I would be the man who most possibly would be able to bring the Azkals to the next level. That is why they bring me in.


source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/06/18/11/azkals-close-getting-know-coach-weiss

The Philippine National Football Team - Azkals

Nickname: Azkals (Street Dogs)

Association: Philippine Football Federation

Team Manager: Dan Palami

Team Coach:Micheal Weiss

Current Team Players

Team Captain: Aly Borromeo

Co-Captain: Chieffy Caligdong

Anton Del Rosario

Ian Araneta

Roel Gener

Nestor Magarse

Eduard Sacapaño

Ricardo Becite

Phil Younghusband

James Younghusband

Neil Etheridge

Robert Gier

Jason Sabio

Nate Burkey

James Rochlitz

Misagh Bahadoran

Ray Jonsson

Stephen Schrock

Manuel Ott

Paul Mulders

Angel Aldeguer

Jerry Lucena

Dennis Cagara