Philippines U23 falls 5-1 to Uzbekistan in Asiad return

NAGOYA, Japan — The Philippine Under-23 men’s football team suffered a 5-1 loss to Uzbekistan on Tuesday, Sept. 15, opening its 20th Asian Games campaign on a difficult note at the CS Asset Minato Soccer Stadium.

The defeat spoiled the Philippines’ return to Asian Games men’s football after a 52-year absence, with the national side playing in the competition for the first time since the 1974 edition in Tehran.

Uzbekistan, the 2022 Asian Games bronze medalist and a side that competed at the 2024 Paris Olympics, broke through in the 30th minute through Muhammadali Urinboev.

The Philippines stayed within a goal through halftime but suffered a major setback three minutes after the restart when Gavin Muens received a straight red card in the 48th minute, leaving the Filipinos with 10 men.

Before Uzbekistan doubled its advantage, John Lucero came close to an equalizer when his attempt from inside the penalty area struck the crossbar.

Saidumarkhon Saidnurullayev then punished a Philippine mistake in midfield in the 60th minute to make it 2-0.

Martin Merino gave the Philippines a lifeline two minutes later, scoring in the 62nd minute after the ball reached him following an Uzbek defender’s attempted clearance of Antoine Ortega’s header.

The goal cut Uzbekistan’s lead to 2-1 and marked Merino’s first international goal, according to a contemporaneous account of the match.

Uzbekistan quickly regained control as Saidnurullayev completed his brace in the 71st minute.

Ruziboy Fayzullaev added Uzbekistan’s fourth goal in the 73rd minute before Mukhammedali Reimov completed the 5-1 rout in the 80th.

The second-half collapse left the Philippines needing a response in its remaining Group C matches against regional rival Vietnam and Kuwait.

The Nationals will have two full days between matches before facing Vietnam on Friday, Sept. 18, at 2:30 p.m. Philippine Standard Time at the same Nagoya venue.

The Philippines will close its group-stage campaign against Kuwait on Sept. 22 at 1 p.m.

The Group C assignment was already considered one of the toughest tests for a Philippine U23 program that entered the Asian Games after a year of notable progress.

“This group has earned the right to be here,” said PFF President John Anthony Gutierrez.

“Over the past year, they reached the semifinals of the ASEAN U23 Championship and the SEA Games, and they backed that up with a winning campaign in the AFC U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers, even against very tough opponents. Beating teams like Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Tajikistan along the way tells you this program is moving in the right direction. Now they get to test themselves on Asia’s grandest stage,” Gutierrez added.

The Philippines reached the semifinals of both the ASEAN U23 Championship – Mandiri Cup and the 2025 SEA Games in 2025.

The squad also recorded its first winning campaign in the AFC U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers in September 2025.

Those results included victories over Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Tajikistan as the youth program built momentum toward its Asian Games return.

McPherson prepared the squad for the tournament with an 11-day training camp in Manila that brought together locally based players and members of the team competing abroad.

“It’s been an important preparation for us to compete to our potential,” McPherson said. “We’ve had the opportunity to look at our best local based talent together with our players playing abroad. During the preparation we have also been monitoring a number of overaged players. We believe we have selected a final roster that deserves [the] opportunity to showcase their qualities on this stage.”

The coach described the Asian Games appearance as a landmark moment for a Philippine program returning to the continental competition after more than five decades.

“Firstly, I am very honoured, as the players are, for the opportunity to represent the country in men’s football at this level for the first time in 52 years,” he said. “Our role is to make sure we continue to play a game that the football community and the wider community of the Philippines can be proud of. That is a mentality that we took into the Mandiri Cup and into the SEA Games. During these tournaments this mentality has brought us positive results.”

The Asian Games men’s football competition follows an Under-23 format, with teams allowed to include three overage players.

McPherson selected midfielder Michael Baldissimo, defender Christian Rontini, and left-sided player Scott Woods as the Philippines’ three overage players.

They joined a core that already had experience from the SEA Games and Mandiri Cup, along with several players born in 2005 who are gaining exposure ahead of next year’s U23 cycle.

McPherson had warned before the opener that the Asian Games would represent another step up in competition.

“This is another level of challenge. This tournament has the best teams from across Asia, many of whom are regulars in knockout stages of continental tournaments,” he said. “For our players to reach new heights, they need to be exposed to this level.”

Captain Sandro Reyes had pointed to continuity within the squad as a source of confidence before the Uzbekistan match.

“The majority of the players have been the same for all four tournaments, so we’re just going to treat it the same,” Reyes said. “We’ve been doing a good job in the last three tournaments, so we just want to fix the small details now, because this is probably going to be the toughest tournament out of all of them.”

Goalkeeper Nic Guimaraes also stressed the importance of concentrating on the Philippines’ own performance despite the quality of its opponents.

“It’s important to analyze what the opponents are going to do, but mostly for me, it’s important for us to focus on what we could do,” he said. “I hope we [can] accomplish something we could have never accomplished in the past.”

Rookie forward Aidan Astilla entered the tournament after scoring in a Sept. 4 tune-up victory over Stallion Laguna.

“We’re very under-looked, the underdogs,” Astilla said. “But [there is] no doubt in my mind that our mindset is just to win, because we believe that we can do it.”

The Philippines now turns its attention to Vietnam, the reigning SEA Games champion and ASEAN U23 Championship winner.

Vietnam previously defeated the Philippines 2-0 in the semifinals of the 2025 SEA Games, adding another layer to Friday’s Group C encounter.

Meanwhile, the Philippine women’s national team, the Filipinas, will seek its first victory of the Asian Games when it faces Hong Kong on Thursday, Sept. 17, at Gifu Nagaragawa Stadium.

The Filipinas opened their Group G campaign with a 1-1 draw against Uzbekistan on Sept. 14 after 19-year-old Natalie Collins scored an 89th-minute equalizer. Philippine Football –

The PMNFT U23 is supported by the PFF, Philippine Olympic Committee, Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., and private sponsors Puma, GoTyme Bank, Studio 300, AIA, Padel 300, 2GO Travel, Sip, Sip+, and Sandbox Prime. (PFF)