Philippines falls short vs Iraq in first match under Saintfiet

The Philippine national men's football team fell short against Iraq, 1-0, in its first match under new head coach Tom Saintfiet in the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers on early Friday (Manila time) at the Basra International Stadium.

A late goal by Mohanad Ali Kadhim at the 84th minute handed the loss to the Philippine side.

"I'm disappointed about the defeat because I hate losing. But I’m very proud of the performance of my team. I knew that we would play against a strong team," Saintfiet said after the match.

"Like I said, my team did very well but one moment of lack of concentration and the [other] team utilized it," he added.

For Saintfiet, it is time to move forward as the March window of the qualifiers continue at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila on Tuesday night.

"I’m impressed with my players that in a short period of time, we could be difficult opponents for Iraq but in five days time, we will play again and we need to be fresh. Hopefully, we get to surprise Iraq in Manila again," he said.

The Philippines has yet to record a win in this round of qualifiers as it fell to Vietnam and settled a draw against Indonesia during the November window. 

—JKC, GMA Integrated News