Philippine football stars Phil and James Younghusbands harbor no ill will toward the management of the national team over their non-inclusion in the Azkals lineup for the recently-concluded Philippine Football Peace Cup, calling the whole matter a “miscommunication”.
In a statement released to News5′s Chiqui Roa-Puno, the brothers said they are “delighted” to be back with the Azkals.
Earlier, Azkals team manager Dan Palami announced the return of the brothers to the lineup after being left off the Peace Cup roster over what the Philippine Football Federation called “economic and non-economic demands.”
“As a team, we take this time to bridge differences as we work towards a common goal: bringing honor and pride to the country,” Azkals manager Dan Palami said in a statement last Wednesday.
The Younghusbands said they want to work with Azkals management on schedules for the national team. Apart from being football stalwarts, the brothers also run their own football school and are in-demand product endorsers.
Despite the absence of the Younghusbands, the Azkals swept all of their three matches to win the Peace Cup last September 29 behind the team’s new faces led by tournament’s Most Valuable Player Denis Wolf.
The Azkals will face Bahrain on October 12 in its capital Manama and Kuwait on October 16 at Kuwait City.
The matches are part of the their preparations for the 2012 ASEAN Football Federation Suzuki Cup this November, where they look to surpass their historic semifinal finish in the same tournament two years ago.
The full statement of the Younghusbands follows:
YH BROTHERS STATEMENT ON TRIP TO BAHRAIN
James and Phil Younghusband are delighted to be back with the Philippine Men’s Football National Team. They remain committed to the endeavors of the national team and chalk up their being dropped from the lineup for the recently concluded Peace Cup as “miscommunication”. They look forward to working this out with team management and their teammates. The focus right now is to help the Philippines advance deeper into the Suzuki Cup tournament this November and December.
As for the other engagements of the Younghusband brothers, they look forward to working with national team management on schedules and timelines.
They likewise remain fully committed to the Loyola Meralco Sparks and their own Business and Corporate endeavors.
source: interaksyon.com
