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The Philippines is hoping to make the most of its opportunities in the FIFA World Cup 2022 and AFC Asian Cup 2023, the series will start in September.
The Azkals was placed in Group A of the 2022 World Cup Qualifier, where they face China, Syria, Maldives and Guam. They will launch their home campaign against Syria on September 5 before facing Guam on September 10.
And the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) is hoping to summon five players who are playing abroad to reinforce the national team ahead of important clashes from September 2019 to June 2020.
Team leader Dan Palami told The Inquirer that The Azkals hopes to add defenders Michael Kempter, Jesse Curran and Elias Mordal as well as midfielder Raphael Obermair and Amin Nazari to the squad before the qualifier begins.
The 24-year-old Kempter was born in Switzerland, has a Swiss father and a Filipino mother. He played as a defender for FC Zurich while Curran, a 23-year-old Australian-born striker, was a full-fledged defensive player, who was last seen in the Dundee FC shirt in Scotland.
Mordal is a 21-year-old Filipino Norwegian player and is playing in right-back position for Brattvag IL in Norway. Meanwhile, German midfielder Obermair is currently playing in SK Sturm Graz in the Bundesliga in Austria.
Nazari is the younger brother of former Iranian player Omid Nazari, who currently plays for Ceres-Negros FC. Nazari currently belongs to Ratchaburi Mitr Phol FC in Thai League 1.
“The next two weeks will be very important for our staff in making sure we get these players in the squad for qualifying round. The work behind the scenes is equally important if we want the best team, ” Pal Palami told the Inquirer.
According to the news, Kempter and Nazari had Filipino passports, while three other players were also in the process of reviewing.
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