MANILA, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- Jovin Bedic's lucky equalizer helped the Philippines men's national football team draw with Southeast powerhouse Thailand 1-1 on Wednesday at 2018 AFF Suzuki Cup.
The last time the Philippines won against Thailand was on June, 1972 with a 1-0 victory. In this latest duel at Pana-ad Stadium, Bacolod, the host team played more aggressive on offense in the latter half of the first half, but neither was able to come up with a solid attempt.
The Philippines team, dubbed as Azkals, continued their assault early in the second half, but it was Thailand that finally broke the deadlock in the 58th minute after Supachai Chaided gathered a cross from his teammate and slotted it into the left corner.
The hosts rallied back from a goal down with a lucky finish by Bedic in the 80th minute after he unleashed a long range shot that hit the woodwork then found the back of the net.
"The result is OK for me, but we could have won the game," said the hosts' head coach Sven-Goran Eriksson, adding that he is very happy with his team's performance in entire 90 minutes.
The Philippines and Thailand each have seven points to lead Group B.
After the draw, Azkels will soon leave for Jakarta to prepare the final round game against Indonesia on Nov. 25th.
The AFF Suzuki Cup is a biennial football competition organized by the Asean Football Federation (AFF), accredited by FIFA and contested by the national teams of Southeast Asia.
Ten teams at 2018 Suzuki Cup divided in two groups of five and play a round robin system with each team playing two home and two away fixtures. Knock-out stage played on a home and away format, with the tournament's two round finals set for December 11 and 15.
