Azkals under Belo?

Anyone else curious about the Azkals-Belo thing? 

Well Neil is, too. Tell me about it.

 

I love how Aly is still a captain even off the field.

Here's what Dr. Belo says:

Philippines vs. Mongolia AFC Challenge Cup 1

Getty Images

The home game we've all been waiting for.
And when I say we, I mean the whole Philippines - who was, almost literally, present at the Panaad Stadium that day. Not a single inch of space around the stadium was unoccupied, and all of it cheering for the Philippines.

In the end, after what appeared to be the longest human wave in history, the Philippines won the game 2-0 against Mongolia. It did not come easily however, with both goals having happened in the dying minutes of each half. I personally expected the Philippines to do better, as the opponents they were dealing with were fainting with heat along the way in stretchers. Not to mention that one Mongolian Altantulga Pagamsuren who was sent out for a red card that left the team playing with 10 players instead of 11.

Chieffy Caligdong's goal gives me chills until now. Phil's goal took us all by surprise - especially that Mongolian keeper.

Philippines
Caligdong 42'
P. Younghusband 93'

Check out some pictures here by S. Kieron Tan.
or
Enjoy some Match GIFs:


Aly! Catch this!




Here you go Jason


I feel the need to tackle someone


Okay Jason I'll do it


No Phil I can tackle this guy myself


Now look what you made me do Jason


It was good enough Rob


Hey move back I wanna tackle someone too


But tackling is dangerous!


Hey who tackled James?!


WHAT ARE YOU ALL DOING LET'S GET SOME GOALS IN


Okay here you go Chieffy!


Oh is this what you need?



Awesome CHIEFFY! Make another goal!


Hey Simon maybe you could get a goal in


Okay how about this?


Nah you do it Phil


Okay fine



ZOMG It went in!


Can I have your jersey?


We're wearing the same jersey! Don't give yours to coach!

Simon Greatwich in the middle of Basketball

Finding an Azkal in the middle of a basketball-centric webshow like GMA's FTW was bound to happen anyways.

In this first part, Simon Greatwich is eventually forced to squeeze out any amount of the Filipino language he knows (probably due to the lack of anything to talk about, since I'm sure the interviewers would rather talk about basketball) and unfortunately ends up remembering and saying a Filipino curse phrase instead. At least he tried.
Don't worry, they get more out of him in this article published by the same show:
"The only Tagalog sentence he [Simon Greatwich] knows by heart is 'Magkano sa Legaspi Towers sa Roxas Boulevard?'"
By the way he also mentions Neil his love Etheridge.

This second one has got more football, with one of the interviewers having been a former footballer himself. This talks about Philippine football in the future, grassroots, etc. - which gives him a reason to mention Phil!

To be honest I stopped listening at some point. I got distracted... with his face.

The Azkals in the middle of basketball have been desirable so far. Remember James' picture? Yeah. Keep them coming. ;)

Some good-looking people featured on Inquirer

It's a shame the Philippine Daily Inquirer didn't post decently-sized images online for their article. I must say it was fun to read however.

"Tell us something about yourself that no one else knows. I once cried in a movie because it was sad. It was 'Marley and Me,' directed by David Frakel, starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston. "

I'm guessing I'm not the only one who noticed Mark's bare midsection in his photograph:

 

"What’s the most unique thing about you? I have an obsession with looking at my phone and contacting everyone at all times, but in the Philippines, this seems like a common thing, so maybe it’s just me. (Laughs)."

"What’s the craziest thing that’s ever happened to you on the field? One time, we were four goals behind, and then I was able to score five goals—so we won that game!"

"What’s your guilty pleasure? I go to the cinema, watch movies. I also go shopping, hang out, maybe eat.
What do you like eating? That’s hard. Maybe pizza."

"Do you have other hobbies aside from football? I’m into a lot of sports! (It was reported in Sun Star Cebu that he is into basketball, swimming, tennis, and billiards). I have a band, 6 Years to Fame. We play alternative rock."

"What’s the craziest fan moment you’ve had? Nothing too crazy, yet. Everybody’s been really good. Really friendly! So far everybody has kept within the boundaries of how it should be."

"What’s the sweetest thing you’ve ever done for a girl? Well, I’m not really a romantic type so … (Turns to his fellow players) Give me some ideas, I need to be clean here. I bought one girl a Coach bag. Yeah, seriously. One time, we were in Metrowalk, there was a girl singing on the stage, and people were writing down their song requests and giving it to the girl, but Eddie Mallari encouraged me to write my phone number and give it to the girl. She texted me later, but I lost my phone, so nothing really happened."

I guess crazy runs in the family. Simon's starting to sound like Chris now.

The Simon Greatwich love triangle

 

Heavy sigh. Everyone's trying to be like Chris Greatwich these days... even Anton. Don't worry, Simon Greatwich fans, this is just harmless teasing. Harmless. -_-

To make up for that displeasing thing that happened right there, this little thing happened:

 

I'm sorry, Anton, but you're just going to have to get used to the fact that Neil and Simon belong to each other. Go find someone else... like Okto, maybe.

Anton's been trying to involve himself with Simon Greatwich's love life. Stop doing our job, Anton. ;)

Philippine Football 101 a.k.a. that Azkals feature on "Patrol ng Pilipino"

If I wanted to make a "Philippine football so far" feature, it would look like this.
The amount of footage is unbelievably awesome. We've got more or less everyone in here. Including the new ones!

This video documents the journey of the Azkals from winning the group stage of the AFF Suzuki Cup, to the PFF President drama, to the first UMak training ever, to the government recognition, to the hype, to the semi-finals matches, to the Indonesian hostility, to the Indonesian hospitality, to the return back home, to the scared-faced airport reception (haha), to the coach drama, to the new coach, to the tryouts for the AFC Challenge Cup. It's all here.

 

 

Neil Etheridge on GMA News Facebook

The folks over at GMA News' Facebook page get to video chat with Neil and we don't. I think he was interviewed from home, so I think that's how his wall looks like! Does it look like yours? Are you living together? Haha moving on...

Video # 1
Neil greets "Kapuso" fans. Kuh-poo-sow

 

Video # 2

Can you let us in on that "massive decision?"

• That "massive decision" was on playing for the Azkals and Neil wanted to leave that tweet as a "cliff-hanger." Neil's trying to be as entertaining as Chris Greatwich, you all. ;)
• Watch Neil's brainwaves take form at about 0:25 as he figures out what date on February the Saturday before the game is.

Video # 3
Have you spoken to Coach Simon yet?

• No he hasn't spoken to Simon personally but he knows about the drama.

What do you think of Coach Weiss?

• He hasn't spoken to ANYONE except for the goalkeeping coach. Aww poor Neil talk to me instead.

Video # 4
Do you think your Azkals stint influenced the Fulham decision to bump you to first team? 

• Well... yeah kinda... they were probably influenced. The Fulham manager watched the Suzuki Cup. 

How do you feel about making it to the first team?

• Making it to the first team is like making it to PBA in the Philippines. Yeah. He said PBA. He also mentioned his fanbase. That's us! :D

How did you handle offers from Indonesian clubs?

• He loves the Premier League too much to leave it. So no. Haha Neil.

 

Video # 5

When did the idea on playing for the Azkals come about?

• Three or four years ago. Called via Younghusband via Chelsea (he was ironically with Chelsea at that time). A year later called for the Challenge Cup and had to make the decision to play for the Philippines - which he is very happy about.

Do you see yourself staying with the Azkals long-term?

• "As far as I know, I the #1 at the moment" -> Yes. In my list, too ;)

 

Video # 6

What do you like most about the Philippines?

• The fans and the people. Second time he's mentioned us.

What is your favorite place here? 

• Neil's a "massive fan of Manila." 

What is your favorite Filipino food? 

• Adobo. Any form of adobo. There's proof. Better start learning to make it.

Chris Greatwich said your Twitter was fake? 

• Chris Greatwich has too much time in his hands. Haha he said it!

Are you single? 

• Yes, he's single and he's not taking anyone to Paris because he's a very selective person a.k.a. just Simon Greatwich. 

Are you interested in joining showbiz?

• YES HE IS INTERESTED in joining showbiz because it's fun to be in front of a camera. Am I hearing this right? Didn't he just say that he wasn't because football's his priority? I'll look for that video...
• He greets fans in the end. Third mention. ;)

Chris Greatwich manages to scare the hell out of us

He eventually takes it back, of course, by saying he's actually Jason.

After which my heart melted because Chris mentioned Jason's name, and that I think I will bug Chris about getting Jason as Twitter.

Moral of the story by quoting Chris myself:
Unless @SimonGreatwich @Neil38Etheridge say it, then take what you read with a pinch of salt!


It's just Chris being Chris. -_-

Someone's getting jealous

Not only is Chris Greatwich the funniest and meanest Tweeter in the world, he is also starting to get a little irked by all the attention to Neil, don't you think?


When requested to send Neil her love:

When asked if Neil has a Twitter:
 







When asked how close Neil and Simon are (probably inspired by this picture):

When asked who's tough on girls:

I could almost see Chris' (T.T)-face while replying to those tweets haha.
Don't worry, Chris, in time you'll reach Hollywood status like Phil and "Jimbo." Just keep doing your riddles and you'll get there!

Oh, and did I mention Chris won the $100 bet that he'll get a thousand followers overnight? Yeah, and it only took nine hours.

*MORE Lovers' quarrel*

Azkals who are possibly playing on February

 Rob Gier:

Follow Rob on Facebook

Haha Rob quoted The Terminator. Were you able to catch James quote Titanic?


Simon Greatwich:

Follow Simon Greatwich on Twitter

Perhaps by now we can assume that Chris Greatwich is playing as well?

And of course, Phil and James. They've even started their fast from McDonald's to reach maximum fitness for the game.

However, the BIG QUESTION still lies: How about Neil Etheridge?
 












 *UPDATE OMG*

PANAAD HERE WE COME