Azkals rating drops after 3 AFC losses

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Azkals may have made history when they saw action in the AFC Asian Cup – a debut highlighted by a tough stand against fancied Korea and a first-ever goal against Kyrgyz Republic – but their winless stint took its toll on their Fifa world ranking.

The Pinoy booters, who conceded losses to powerhouse Korea (0-1), China (0-3) and Kyrgyz Republic (1-3) in the group stage, found themselves down to No. 123 in the February 2019 ranking recently released by the International Football Federation.

This represented a drop of seven places in their pre-Asian Cup ranking of 116th,  a -36 drop in ranking points hastening their fall.

Phl’s fellow ASEAN countries, Vietnam and Thailand, enjoyed a jump after making the knockout stages.

The Vietnamese, who pushed eventual runner-up Japan to the limit before yielding a 0-1 loss in the quarterfinals, moved up one spot to 99th overall and maintained their position as the top-ranked Southeast Asian side in the Fifa list.

The Thais, who lost to China in the Round of 16  (1-2), jumped by three places to 115th, leapfrogging the Phl as the second-best in Southeast Asia.