Klimala brace tows Sydney FC triumph over Kaya FC

c/o AFC

Kaya FC-Iloilo suffered back-to-back defeats in AFC Champions League Two action on Thursday night, bowing to Sydney FC, 1-4, at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.

The PFL champions managed to start off strong, with captain Audie Menzi finding Daizo Horikoshi for a textbook finish after three minutes.

Caught off guard, the A-League side gathered themselves and tried to find an answer, eventually securing the equalizer after 26 minutes.

Joe Lolley would take advantage of Simone Rota's error in clearance, sending a shot past Walid Essafi to tie things us.

Both sides had efforts to secure a second goal before the break, with best opportunities coming from the visitors.

A Douglas Costa shot from distance in the 35th minute went just wide of the left post, while Lolley's attempt off a setup from Rhyan Grant was deflected before being eventually saved by Essafi.

Kaya did have a chance to add to the tally, but a Yi-Young Park's free kick was slightly off target.

The second half proved to be a different story, as Sydney decided to increase the tempo, eventually cracking the Kaya FC defense.

Costa sent a looping cross that a Patryk Klimala header powers past Essafi in the 59th minute to give Sydney the lead. The Pole then would double his tally four minutes later, receiving a cross from Anas Ouahim and then volleying it home from a reverse angle.

Capping off the victory is a injury-time strike from substitute Nathan Amanatidis in stoppage time, securing his first goal for the club.

With back-to-back wins, Sydney FC is now atop Group E with six points, while Kaya FC remains without a point heading into the start of its Philippines Football League campaign this weekend.

Continental pathways set for United City, Kaya FC

AFC Champions League East Zone

The paths of the two Filipino sides in the AFC Champions League and the AFC Cup are set, with the confirmation of the draw results for both competition on Monday.

United City FC is already assured of a Group Stage berth, having been slotted into Group G with respective league champions BG Pathum United of Thailand and Melbourne City of Australia. Completing the quartet is Korean FA Cup winners Jeongnam Dragons.

Upon learning the results, Eric Gottschalk shares, "We have a very balanced but competitive group & avoiding a team from China & Japan is definitely not a bad draw. I’m personally looking forward to the match-up with Thailand as this is the competitive level what we are always measuring ourselves against."

AFC Cup ASEAN Zone

As for Kaya FC, they will have to earn their way into the Group Stage, as they will face a yet-to-be-determined Australian side on March 8. A victory will earn them a shot a week later against Chinese side Changchun Yatai, provided the CSL team secures its clearance from the AFC. Win that one, and they secure a spot in Group H alongside two-time champions Jeonbuk Hyundai, J-League side Yokohama F. Marinos, and Vientamese champions Hoang Anh Gia Lai FC.

A loss in either match eliminates them from AFC Champions League action, but the team is already assured of a berth in the Group Stage portion of the AFC Cup.

The ASEAN Zone pathway for Kaya puts them in Group G, alongside Bali United of Indonesia and Kedah Darul Aman FC of Malaysia. Completing the group will be either Visakha FC of Cambodia and Young Elephants FC of Laos, who will face off in April to determine that spot.

United City Football Club forms kit partnership with CHRONOS, reveals design for upcoming AFC Champions League

CHRONOS unveiled as the official kit supplier of United City Football Club (UCFC) ahead of the 2021 AFC Champions League campaign

Reigning Philippines Football League champions United City Football Club revealed this week their kits that they will use in the upcoming AFC Champions League season, where they make their Group Stage debut.

Chronos Athletics helped with the design of these kits. They are also set to serve as the team's kit supplier for this season. This is different from the fan-designed kit commissioned by the UCFC, which is set to be used for the upcoming PFL season.

UCFC co-founder Eric Gottschalk shares, "I'm very excited to announce that Chronos Athletics will be the official kit supplier of UCFC for the 2021 season.  We continue to stay true to our mission of supporting local businesses involved in football in the Philippines while not compromising on the quality required for our professional players." According to him, "We believe this historic event for Philippine football deserves a special jersey. Thank you to our new partners from Chronos Athletics to make this possible."

He adds, "We are also excited to have found a dynamic partner who shares our vision of how football can be promoted, and we are thrilled that we were able to develop a limited-edition jersey just ahead of the AFC Champions League campaign..."

Eric also says, "Chronos not only involved us in the development of the AFC Champions League design, but it also ensured that we have a complete distribution and marketing channel behind our merchandise range..."

Chronos Athletics founder Lloyd Yniguez had this to say about their new partnership, "Chronos Athletics is proud to be chosen to become the official kit supplier and merchandiser of UCFC, undoubtedly currently the most dominant Club in the Philippines. The aim is to promote the brand of UCFC and to make the merchandise products available to fans in the Philippines as well as abroad..."

The announcement is the latest development of UCFC with regards to making their merchandise available to the public, one that has integrated both marketing and logistical solutions. Gottschalk concludes, "It all goes back to make sure we are as close as possible to our fans and the community; without them, we are nothing. We need to be able to communicate to and through our fans, and having our team jerseys available for purchase is just one of the vehicles we are exploring."

Pre-orders of the new kit and other merchandise can already be conducted through the team's official website, https://www.unitedcityfootballclub.com/. Inquiries to Chronos Athletics can be coursed through their online shopping platform in Shopee, as well as through their Instagram and Facebook page (chronosathletics.ph).

Among the options potentially available for fans to purchase are customized replicas of the AFC Champions League kit, both in home yellow and away black, with "Premium," "Cheer," and "Fan" versions. Training kits are also available, and with the current pandemic ongoing, branded face masks.

The squad is already preparing for their camp in Dubai, which is slated from May 30 to June 20, with the Group I matches against Beijing FC (June 26 and July 8), Kawasaki Frontale (July 2 and 5), and either Daegu FC or Chiangrai FC (June 29 and July 11) taking place in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

Ceres Negros, Shan United set for AFC Champions League play

Club football in the Philippines for 2020 commences on Tuesday night, as Philippines Football League and Copa Paulino Alcantara champions Ceres Negros FC face off against Burmese rivals Shan United in the first round of the AFC Champions League preliminary round.

Set for a 7:30pm kickoff, both teams look to secure a victory that would vault them into the next round, where a matchup against Thai side Port FC looms next week.

Shan United is still searching for their first win against the Busmen, having lost in all five of their meetings, including their preliminary round meeting a couple of years ago, where they lost 4-3 in penalties after playing to a 1-1 standoff after extra time in Yangon. Fresh from an undefeated season in the Myanmar National League, they are looking to make themselves more competitive in continental play.

Ceres is looking for a better performance this time around after suffering a 2-1 loss to Yangon United at Bacolod to end their ACL hopes last year. They have reacquired Arnie Pasinabo and Joshua Grommen, while adding Hikaru Minegeshi and Mark Hartmann to join a core centered on Stephan Schroeck and Bienve Maranon.

For Philippine fans, if the match pushes through, the Ceres-Shan matchup will be shown LIVE on 5Plus, as well as the Sports5 social media channels.

The Local Organizing Committee continues to work as if the match will push through and will only notify if there are any changes if the AFC makes such a declaration.

Ceres' Asian path revealed

Your PFL champions

Earlier this month, the path for current Filipino football champions Ceres-Negros FC to compete in continental play was formally established, with the draws for both the AFC Champions League and the AFC Cup in Kuala Lumpur.

The road to the AFC Champions League.

In AFCCL play, the Busmen will be hosting Burmese rivals Shan United in the first round of preliminary play on January 14. Win that and a matchup against Thai FA Cup champions Port FC looms on January 21. The winner of that particular matchup will then head to Japan to face J-League runners-up FC Tokyo on January 28 for the right to participate in Group Stage play.

The survivor for this particular preliminary bracket has been slotted to Group F, where Korean side Ulsan Hyundai, Chinese side Shanghai Shenhua, and Aussie squad Perth Glory await.

The known road for the Busmen

If Ceres is unable to survive the gauntlet in the AFC Champions League prelims, they already have a guaranteed slot in the AFC Cup Group Stage, where they were drawn into Group G alongside Vietnamese side Than Quang Ninh and Indonesian champions Bali United, provided they miss out on AFC CL Group Stage play.

Completing Group G is the winner of the ASEAN Zone playoff between Master 7 FC of Laos against Preah Khan Reach Svay Rieng FC of Cambodia. The two are set to square off in a two-leg playoff in January.

Ceres-Negros FC has been the standard-bearer for Philippine club football in recent years, having qualified for continental play in the past six years. They secured the inaugural ASEAN Zone title in the 2017 AFC Cup, while managing to reach the final round of qualification for the 2018 AFC Champions League.
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History in AFC Competitions (Ceres-Negros FC)

AFC Cup
2015 Playoff Round
2016 Round of 16 (old format)
2017 ASEAN Zonal Champions, Inter-Zone Semifinals (quarterfinals, new format)
2018 ASEAN Zonal Finals
2019 ASEAN Zonal Semifinals

AFC Champions League
2018 Playoff Round (third round)
2019 Preliminary Round 1 (first round)

Road to Continental Play for PFL clubs known

AFC Cup action between Global Cebu FC and JDT from earlier this year.

With the draws for both the AFC Cup and AFC Champions League already conducted earlier this afternoon, there is some sense of clarity with regards to continental football play for Filipino club football sides.

Based on how our club and national team performed in the past few years, the Asian Football Confederation has granted a couple of spots for the Philippines. The Philippines Football Federation has allocated both berths to the last two teams standing in the Philippines Football League, whose season concludes on December 16.

The champion of the PFL has been granted the chance to potentially play in the highest level continental club competition, the AFC Champions League. Their road to that tourney will not be easy, as they have to play on the road and win for three straight weeks in January just to earn a berth in the Group Stage, whose composition was just revealed earlier this afternoon.

After being crowned champions, the PFL winner will have just a month to prepare against Burmese side Shan United FC on January 16. The winner travels to Brisbane to face off against A-League side Brisbane Roar on January 23, with the winner then traveling to Tianjin to go up against Tianjin Quanjian FC of the Chinese Super League on January 30. If they defeat all three opponents, they are slotted into Group E, where Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors FC of the K-League and Hong Kong powerhouse Kitchee SC are already guaranteed spots in the Group Stage. The last spot in Group E is to be decided between either the winner of Muangthong United and Johor Darul Ta'zim, and a yet-to-be determined J-League side.

If the PFL champion fails to win in any of those three matches, they are still guaranteed continental competition, as they are slotted already into the Group Stage of the AFC Cup. The draw put them into Group F alongside S-League side Home Utd, either Shan United or Yadanarbon FC of Myanmar, and the winner of the two-leg playoff between Khmer side Boeung Ket Angkor FC and Laotian side Lao Toyota FC. If the champion is blessed to qualify in AFC Champions League play, the third place team is slotted in instead, putting some potential incentive for the third place game of the PFL Finals Series on December 16.

Meanwhile, the PFL runner-up is already guaranteed a berth in AFC Cup, as they were slotted into Group G, alongside either Bali United or Madura United of Indonesia, FLC Than Hoi or Hanoi FC of Vietnam, and Burmese side Yangon United.

AFC Cup Group Stage matches will commence in February.

Meanwhile, the PFL Finals Series will continue with the second legs set this Saturday, with 7pm kickoffs for FC Meralco Manila hosting Global Cebu FC at Rizal Memorial and Ceres-Negros FC hosting Kaya FC-Makati at the Pana-ad Park and Stadium.