After AFF win, Filipinas' Guillou warns against taking progress for granted
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine women's national football team are on a high after being crowned the new queens of Southeast Asian football with the AFF Women's Championship title conquest.
Back-to-back victories over regional powerhouses Vietnam and Thailand en route to the country's first-ever football championship in any level, it can be easy to get carried away with all the success the team has enjoyed.
But knowing that great programs in football are not built overnight, Filipinas attacking midfielder Katrina Guillou said that they must not presume that the momentum will continue for the team.
"I mean, just not taking for granted what we've had," she said of what the team needs to continue to be consistent.
"You saw in our games, we lost to Thailand in just one moment in the first game. And then we came back, had a great game against Vietnam and then another one against Thailand. I think it just shows that anything can happen between any game," she added.
The Filipinas were riding a four-game win streak in the Women's Championship group stage before being stopped in their tracks by a 1-nil loss to Thailand in their final game in group play.
That relegated the home team to the second seed, facing off against defending champions Vietnam in the semifinal.
Heading into that match-up, the Filipinas had never won against Vietnam, and the latter were also on a four-year win streak against Southeast Asian foes.
But Guillou and the Filipinas were able to bounce back and string two impressive victories over Vietnam and Thailand to reach the pinnacle of Southeast Asian football.
Now that they've reached the peak, Guillou says they are keen on keeping both feet on the ground to make sure it isn't just a one-off thing.
"We just gotta keep a good head on our shoulders, and then just keep preparing the best that we can," she said.
The Filipinas are about to take a break before the FIFA international window in October after back-to-back impressive finishes in the 31st SEA Games and in the AFF Women's Championship.
In the SEA Games, the Filipinas won their first bronze medal in the tiff since the 1980s which served as a prelude to their history-making win in the Women's Championship.
Guillou, for her part, scored two goals in the Filipinas' seven matches in the tournament.
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