By NIKOLE JAVIER
Much to the dismay of the 10,000-strong home crowd, the Philippine men’s national football team found itself on the brink of relegation after falling to a 5-0 hole against visiting Iraq in the second round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifiers on Tuesday night, March 26, at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila.
The National booters remained at the bottom of the Group F with no victory but a lone goal that had them settle for a draw with Indonesia last year.
It was then followed by a 2-nil defeat against Vietnam also at home before the Philippines resumed action last week where it conceded a last-minute goal to Iraq in its home turf.
With another rough loss, the Filipinos could be looking at a relegation to the AFC Asian Cup should they lose their back-to-back fixtures on the road against Vietnam and Indonesia – officially running out of chances to make it to the biggest football showpiece two years from now.
The win for the Iraqis, meanwhile, meant they have progressed to the third round of the tournament with a dominant four consecutive wins and a +12 goal difference.
Forward Aymen Hussein made it possible early into the match as he opened the scoring for the Iraqis after converting on a penalty kick in the 14th minute.
The Pinoy booters had back-to-back chances in midway through the first half but their attempts were just wide on each side.
In the 31st minute, the scramble inside the box saw Ali Jasim Elaibi’s attempt blocked by the Filipinos but Amir Fouad was quick on his feet and fired a left-footed shot off the defensive rebound to put Iraq ahead by 2-0.
Six minutes later, Hussein scored a brace to give the visiting side its third goal as the Philippines greeted the break trailing big in front of the expectant home crowd.
In the second half, Zidane Aamad Iqbal found the back of the net past veteran keeper Neil Etheridge for his first-ever international goal for Iraq in the 62nd minute, 4-0.
With morale high and momentum on their side, the Iraqis continued their relentless assault against the hosts as Zaid Tahseen scored off a brilliant header from Louay Al Ani’s cross – giving them the assurance.
It was definitely a far cry for the Filipinos who pretty much kept a clean sheet in their first encounter with Iraq until the 83rd minute came.
