It is exposed that the Philippine national gate is missing the Asian Cup to help the team relegation
In the upcoming Asian Cup, the Chinese team will meet the Philippines team in the group stage. According to the Chairman of the Philippine Football Association Maiano Araneta, the team’s top star, Etheridge, the Premier League goalkeeper known for his penalty kicks, will only play one Asian Cup and miss the Chinese team.
As a newcomer to the Asian Cup, the Philippines team is in the same group as China, South Korea and Kyrgyzstan. This team has two famous figures: one is coach Sven Eriksson, who has coached for England, Guangzhou R&F and Shanghai SIPG for many years, and the other is Premier League Cardiff City goalkeeper Neil. · Etheridge.
Etheridge, 28, was born in Enfield, London, England. His father is British and his mother is Filipino, so he has the qualifications to play for the Philippine national team. Etheridge was born in the Chelsea youth academy. After helping Cardiff City rush to the Premier League last season, he became the first Filipino player to play in the Premier League this season (and also the first Southeast Asian player to play in the Premier League). In the first two league games against Bournemouth and Newcastle, he saved penalties and became famous for a while. So far, Etheridge has played 68 games for the Philippines national team. As Cardiff City's main goalkeeper this season, he started all 17 Premier League games.
At present, Cardiff ranks 16th in the standings with 14 points, and the relegation situation is not optimistic. The Philippine Football Association decided to only recruit Etheridge to play the first Asian Cup group stage (vs. South Korea on January 7). Not surprisingly, Michael Falkesgaard (a Danish and Filipino hybrid) will replace Etheridge in two Asian Cup group matches after the battle (the opponents are China and Kyrgyzstan). This is undoubtedly good news for the Chinese team.