The Maldives National Football Team strongly encourages as many supporters as possible to attend and support the team during their upcoming AFC Asian Cup Qualifying match against the Philippines on Tuesday. Tickets for this match are currently being sold at the Football Association’s ticket counter on Majeedhee Magu (opposite Olympus), with stand tickets priced at 50 rufiyaa and seat tickets at 100 rufiyaa. As the national team prepares to face the Philippines on home ground, they are appealing for maximum supporter attendance. The team emphasizes that fan support and assistance are crucial for securing a home victory for the Maldives.
The number of supporters attending national team matches has been increasing in recent years, and the national team consistently states that supporters are the team’s most important player. They maintain that success is impossible without fan support, noting that even their recent South Asian Super Cup championship was achieved through the encouragement and unwavering support from fans. Therefore, as the Maldives hopes to secure points in their second qualifying match against the strong Philippines team, the Football Association of Maldives (FAM) urges as many people as possible to purchase tickets, as supporters will provide the greatest assistance toward this goal.
With a significant Filipino population residing in the Maldives, it is anticipated that Filipino supporters will attend the match in numbers comparable to Maldivian fans. Therefore, having as many Maldivians as possible attend with national enthusiasm will provide tremendous encouragement for the team’s success. Prior to arriving in the Maldives, the Philippines team conducted a three-day training camp in Dubai, where they played a friendly match against a strong local team. This camp was designed to help the Philippines team acclimate to the hot weather conditions similar to the Maldives. As the Philippines and Maldives prepare to meet at the Galolhu Stadium on Tuesday, the Maldives currently sits at the bottom of the table after losing all four qualifying matches played so far, while the Philippines is at the top with 10 points, ahead of Tajikistan only on goal difference. This makes the match against the Maldives crucial for the Philippines to win. When these two teams met in the Philippines in March of this year, the Philippines won 4-1.
The Philippines has selected all their key experienced players for this match, including goalkeeper Kevin Ray Mendoza and veteran defenders Jefferson Tabinas and Amani Aguinaldo. Additionally, the squad includes midfielder Manny Ott, who has represented the national team in 68 matches, along with forwards Javier Gayoso and Sebastian Rasmussen. The Maldives national team has also been training following a break in the Maldives Premier League and has made several changes to their squad. Looking at the announced squad for the Philippines match, new opportunities have been given to Valencia’s young captain Ethan Ibrahim Zaki, Buru Sports Club defender Thaif Qasim, and Club Eagles goalkeeper Mohamed Ashwan. However, due to an injury to Ashwan, Maziya’s goalkeeper Iyan Abdulaleem has been called up to the national team. Experienced player Ahmed Aiham has been removed from the team.
Aiham was dropped from the team after failing to attend the first practice session for the Philippines match without notifying the FAM, as he had gone to participate in a futsal tournament in his home island. However, Aiham has since acknowledged that his actions fell below the standards expected of a national team player and has apologized to the national team. In the away match against the Philippines in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers, the Maldives suffered a significant 4-1 defeat.
After that match, which was played at the New Clark City Athletics Stadium in the Philippines on March 25, then-national team coach Ali Suzain stated that the main reason for the 4-1 defeat was the naturalized players representing the Philippines. Following that experience, the Maldives will enter the home match under the guidance of experienced coach Mohamed Shiyaz (Mohan).
