The Philippine Football Federation (PFF) has released the lineup of the Philippine Men’s National Football Team (PMNFT) that will compete in the Tri-Nation Friendlies this June. The lineup is marked by the noticeable absence of Bjorn Kristensen.
Battling against Guam and Myanmar, Sandro Reyes and the rest of the Philippine team will have to find other key contributors without one of their young leaders.
22-Man Lineup Revealed
The 22 players confirmed for the PMNFT are as follows:
GOALKEEPERS: Michael Falkesgaard, Quincy Kammeraad, Quincy Kammeraad
DEFENDERS: Jefferson Tabinas, Paul Tabinas, Daisuke Sato, Jaime Rosquillo, Noah Leddel, Scott Woods, Santi Rublico.
MIDFIELDERS: Kenji Nishioka, Randy Schneider, John Lucero, Manuel “Manny” Ott, Christian Rontini, Sandro Reyes, Cole Mrowka, Oskari Kekkonen
FORWARDS: André Leipold, Pocholo Bugas, Sebastian Rasmussen, Jarvey Gayoso
This lineup includes several players who have already played for the national team, like Ott, Schneider, and the Tabinas brothers. With their familiarity with the system implemented by head coach Carles Cuadrat, they will certainly help the current team put up a fight in their friendlies.
No Bjorn Kristensen for Undisclosed Reasons
As of writing, there is still no official statement from the PFF as to why one of the cornerstones of the national team will be skipping the friendlies.
Despite the matches against Myanmar and Guam being nonbearing, it is still unusual for a player like him to miss out, given his importance to the team playing alongside his fellow leader, Sandro Reyes.
Reyes and Kristensen have been integral to the team since last year. The two have played in numerous international tournaments but were most remarkable during the 33rd Southeast Asian Games and the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers.
After all, the Philippines and Myanmar will still face each other in the upcoming 2026 ASEAN Hyundai Cup on July 28, as they are in the same group.
Whatever the case may be as to why Bjorn Kristensen will not be seeing action this June at Rizal Memorial Stadium, best believe that the Philippines will try to find other ways to win every match.
