Goodbye to the Azkals, but hope is in the air

By Al S. Mendoza

THE trouble with hello is goodbye?

In a sense, yes.

I just said hello to the Azkals.  That was on Thursday, July 28.

About two hours later, I said my goodbye to the Azkals.

You all know the reason: The Azkals lost to Kuwait, 1-2.

Lynch me, but I had told those willing to listen beforehand that we’d lose to Kuwait.

The miracle for one to defeat a foe 27 rungs higher in rank is simply next to impossible.

Thus, with the debacle, we are out of the World Cup qualifying for the 2014 World Cup of football in Brazil.

Since the World Cup is held once in every four years, our next chance to vie again for a slot in the 2018 World Cup is in 2014.

Perhaps, by 2014, most of our present crop of Azkals could be retired.

If some have families of their own, don’t be surprised.

If some have become successful businessmen, or have become movie stars – such as brothers Phil and James Younghusband – don’t be surprised, too.

Four years is a long time.  In 2014, Phil and Angel Locsin might be married already and have kids of their own, who knows?

By 2014, a new breed of Azkals could be barking at that elusive berth to the 2018 World Cup.

I’m sure all those under-25 in the Azkals lineup today might still be around by 2014.

But will they be still around in 2018?  I doubt.

Such is football’s World Cup.

Because it is the world’s No. 1 sports event, organizers make it sure the qualifying matches are held early to avoid foul-ups in schedule.

Football is world No. 1 that World Cup crowds surpass those that watch even the quadrennial Summer Olympics since time immemorial.

If horseracing is the sport of kings and royalty, football is the game of the universe.

It is so popular it breeds fanaticism.

Numerous are tragic incidents wherein goalkeepers and players alike got themselves gunned down by irate fans not brave enough to face the reality of defeat, especially in South America’s Brazil and Argentina where the game is venerated almost in co-equal stature with religion.

However, in Asia, it is only us that don’t treat football as No. 1.

Basketball has always been No. 1

But with the birth of the Azkals, footballmania has been sweeping the land since late last year.

And for good reason, like the Azkals had beaten Asian football powers Vietnam, Singapore, Brunei and Mongolia, among others.

When the Azkals defeated Sri Lanka to earn the right to meet Kuwait, it marked the first time that the Philippines barged into the second round of World Cup qualifying.

That was enough to celebrate the obviously impending rebirth of football, a sport holding a lofty spot in the hearts of Filipinos from the Fifties to the Sixties.

The loss to Kuwait was bitter, but we shouldn’t be mourning over it as though we lost a dearest one.

We are 162nd in the world, Kuwait No. 95.

In Asia, the Top 3 are Japan at No. 16, South Korea No. 28 and Iran No. 54.

We need time to jell.

Most important, we need all the support – financial most especially as in the MVP example all this time – for us to even break into the Top 100.

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