Philippine goalkeeper hopes Vietnamese striker continues to fail to score

Neil Etheridge knows that Vietnam's strikers are in poor form, and hopes that will continue into tomorrow's opening match of Group F, second stage of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

Before the match against the Philippines, seven Vietnamese strikers including Van Quyet, Pham Tuan Hai, Dinh Bac, Tien Linh, Thanh Nhan, Van Toan and Van Tung had not scored after three opening rounds of the 2023-2024 V-League. Tuan Hai was in better shape after scoring three goals in the AFC Champions League. Goalkeeper Neil Etheridge said he knew this information when speaking at a press conference on the afternoon of November 15, one day before the match.

"I always think a player who has not scored for two months can still score continuously for the rest of the season," Etheridge shared. "But I hope that doesn't start tomorrow with the Vietnamese strikers."

Goalkeeper Neil Etheridge aims to keep a clean sheet for the Philippines when they face Vietnam. Photo: Hieu Luong — Goalkeeper Etheridge aims to keep a clean sheet for the Philippines when they face Vietnam. Photo: *Hieu Luong*

The 1990-born goalkeeper aims to keep a clean sheet against Vietnam, as he did in the 2-0 victory over the same opponent in the group stage of the AFF Cup 2010. He added that each match has its own characteristics, so he only focuses on commanding his teammates and defense. "I have studied the Vietnamese strikers, and I am sure they will do the same with me," Etheridge said.

When asked about the 2010 match where the Philippines defeated Vietnam at My Dinh Stadium, Etheridge did not mention it specifically because he thought everyone knew what happened. However, the Philippines captain said that the match had been 13 years in the past, and he and his teammates needed to focus more on tomorrow's match.

The 33-year-old goalkeeper said the Philippines is showing great unity under coach Michael Weiss, and will try to put in the best performance to meet the expectations of the Filipino fans, who are expected to fill the 12,800 seats at the Rizal Memorial Stadium. He said he is always excited to play in front of a full stadium, like a child entering the Christmas holiday.

Also at the pre-match press conference, coach Michael Weiss said the Philippines must play with more fire and aggression to counter Vietnam. When asked about this, Etheridge explained that the coach did not mean that the Philippines would play dirty. "I think it should be understood as desire and determination," he said. "We must try our best to fulfill the responsibility placed on our shoulders."

Etheridge is the top player in the match taking place at Rizal Memorial tomorrow, November 16. He was the main goalkeeper for Cardiff City in the Premier League 2018-2019, and played for many years in the First, Second and Third Divisions of England. Currently, Etheridge is under head coach Wayne Rooney's Birmingham City, but lost his official position to veteran goalkeeper John Ruddy from the 2022-2023 season.

Etheridge has been playing for the Philippines national team since 2008 and has played 76 matches. In June 2019, Etheridge was valued at 8 million euros (about 208 billion VND) by the transfer statistics website Transfermakt , becoming the most valuable Southeast Asian player in history.

Hieu Luong (from Manila)

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