Go Azkals!

Make or break. Do or die. Go or stay home. Experience vs. upstart. Mission impossible. Will it rain for the Azkals? These are some of the descriptions of sportswirters and buffs for today's game of our own dear Azkals team vs. Kuwait. What else could I say but GO AZKALS.

All roads will lead to the fabled Rizal Memorial tonight. One of the biggest events in recent memory. One that unite our people. One that excites the nation. One that make us proud. Only Manny Pacquaio has surpassed this phenomenon. Win or lose, the Azkals has already made history. It's a joyful day, rain or no rain.

What's up for tonight. A very tall order. We have to overcome that 0-3 deficit. Almost a miracle. That's what Phil Star Sports say in bold letters: BELIEVE IN MIRACLE! Okay. Miracles do happen. How's that to happen?

My two cents worth. From defensive mood in the first game, we should play aggressive offense. We have to score. And ideally, we have to score early. That would inspire us and perhaps rattle the Kuwaitis. Fil-German Stephen Schrock  is expected to orchestrate the flowing offense and will also be at the forefront of defense with Aly Borromeo also back into action.. The offense should step up. We almost scored  in the first half then; perhaps their defense is not rock solid. Expect then that they will change strategy. Protecting their almost insurmountable 3-0 lead,I anticipate they'll move backward in defense, also in respect to the abilities of our attackers. But watch out for their offense too. They have strong attackers. And they can shift fast from defense to offense and vice versa. They are well conditioned .I don't think our weather will bother them as they are exposed to international events. Our Azkals should play as if this is their last. They have to run the full 90 minutes. Time is sticking. Obviously, while more on offfense, they should not throw caution in the wind on defense. The 12th man should come in all the time. The hometown crowd. Let's go rah rah rah.

I look forward to a good game. Such high caliber football does not happen here every day. A 2-1 Azkal win is doable. 1-0 is realistic. But 3-0 or 4-0? Come on! Kuwait is champion of Gulf Cup of Nation and West Asian Cup titles last year; both high level Asian tourneys. Football is Kuwait's national passion, perhaps more then Filipinos adore basketball.

I'm taking my family to the game. To support our Azkals. For our country. For the love of football.