Philippines have endured a difficult start to their ASEAN Championship campaign but head coach Carles Cuadrat believes his squad is beginning to overcome the mental hurdles that have defined their opening matches.
Earlier in the week, the Filipinos opened the tournament -- also known as the ASEAN Hyundai Cup 2026 -- with a disappointing 4-1 loss to Myanmar at New Clark City Stadium in Capas, Tarlac.
Despite controlling 62% of possession, Philippines managed just two shots on target compared to Myanmar's eight, wasting several opportunities while paying dearly for defensive lapses.
The same pattern nearly repeated itself on Saturday against Laos, although Philippines ultimately rallied after falling behind to claim a 4-1 win at New Laos National Stadium in Vientiane.
Laos took the lead in the seventh minute after Damoth Thongkhamsavath's long-range effort slipped through the hands of goalkeeper Quincy Kammeraad. Kenji Nishioka then thought he had equalized with a header in the 26th minute -- only for the goal to be disallowed following a VAR review.
Unable to find the breakthrough before halftime, Philippines struggled to capitalize despite holding the advantage in possession, allowing Laos to believe it could pull off an upset on home soil at the Lao National Stadium KM16 in Vientiane.
"Once again, it felt as though circumstances were working against us," Cuadrat said. "I am happy because we managed to change the course of the game. Until we scored our second goal, it seemed as though everything was going against us."
"It was similar to our opening match. We created chances to score more goals, including an effort from Cole [Mrowka] that struck the crossbar, but we could not take advantage of them."
Philippines found their breakthrough after the restart and never looked back. John Lucero leveled the match in the 47th minute before Mrowka forced an own-goal off Laos defender Viengxay Sydavong five minutes later. Jarvey Gayoso extended the lead with a penalty in the 60th minute while Daisuke Sato completed the victory with a header two minutes from time.
The comeback was aided by Laos being reduced to ten men after defender Phetdavanh Somsanid received a red card in the 14th minute.
For Cuadrat, the turning point was not the numerical advantage but his players' ability to recover from another difficult start.
"The players had to overcome several difficult mental moments during both our opening match and today's game," Cuadrat said. "I am not referring to refereeing decisions. I am talking about our own mistakes and unexpected situations that placed us in a difficult position mentally."
The Spanish tactician credited his squad for responding to the halftime adjustments and regaining control of the match.
"I am pleased that the players were able to reverse the situation following our discussion at half-time," he said. "They understood what we needed to do differently during the second half, and we scored very quickly after the restart."
"Of course, Laos being reduced to ten players worked in our favour. We had more space, while their players began to tire. I thought we produced a second-half performance that allowed us to secure the three points. Most importantly, I am happy that we changed our fortunes."
"Until this match, we had been very unfortunate during several important moments."
The victory revived Philippines' hopes of reaching the semifinals ahead of a crucial showdown against Group B leaders Thailand on Tuesday in Tarlac.
Cuadrat described the win over Laos as a "gift," one that could provide the confidence and momentum his team needs before facing the regional powerhouses.
The two sides last met in the semifinals of the 2024 ASEAN Championship, where Philippines snapped a 52-year winless streak against Thailand with a 2-1 first-leg victory. Thailand, however, advanced to the final after claiming the second leg to complete a 4-3 aggregate comeback.
"The victory is a good reward for the squad, and we must now focus on our next match, which is only three days away," Cuadrat said.
Kickoff is set for 9 p.m. on Tuesday.
