Southeast Asia's most expensive player only played 1 match at the Asian Cup

However, similar to the AFF Cup 2018, the 28-year-old goalkeeper only played in 1 match at the Asian Cup 2019 because he had to return to play for Cardiff City Club.

“We know the importance of Neil Etheridge to Cardiff City so he only played the Azkals' first match in the Asian Cup and then had to return to Cardiff City,” said Mr. Mariano Araneta, President of the Philippine Football Federation.

If what Mariano Araneta confirmed is true, Neil Etheridge will only play the match against South Korea on January 7, 2019 before having to return to Wales at the request of Cardiff City.

In the 2018 AFF Cup, Neil Etheridge only played 1 match, in the victory over Singapore, and then had to say goodbye to the Philippines national team. The replacement for the most expensive player in Southeast Asia (Etheridge is valued at over 3.1 million pounds) is goalkeeper Michael Falkesgaard.

At the 2019 Asian Cup, the Philippines team is in Group C with South Korea, China and Kyrgyzstan. The Azkals' first match will take place on January 7, 2019, against the strongest opponent in the group, South Korea.