Push Admin

Neil Etheridge hopes Premier League presence can make impact in PH

Article (news)

Michael Church, Reuters

HONG KONG—In the Philippines, where basketball rules the sporting scene and football is a minor player, Neil Etheridge is hoping he can make a positive impact with his Premier League debut this weekend.Goalkeeper Etheridge will become the first player from Southeast Asia to feature in the top flight of English football when he makes his debut on Saturday afternoon for Cardiff City against Bournemouth.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/08/08/18/football-azkals-keeper-neil-etheridge-on-cusp-of-premier-league-history">Azkals goalkeeper on cusp of Premier League history</a></li></ul>But while millions of fans in Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia will be tuning in, Philippines is more likely to be focused on the fate of the nation&#x27;s basketball team as they hone their preparations for this month&#x27;s Asian Games.Etheridge knows his presence in the world&#x27;s most watched league might not do much to change the sporting landscape in Manila and beyond, but he is optimistic it can have a long-term impact on Filipino football.&quot;I think, if we&#x27;re being realistic, we&#x27;re a long way from being able to compete with basketball,&quot; the England-born custodian told Reuters.&quot;It&#x27;s a cultural thing more than anything. For me, it&#x27;s just about getting younger players to play for the national team and hopefully helping the Philippine league progress. We are far away from other sports but we&#x27;ve got to start somewhere.&quot;<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/BmF5k1aA8X_/?utm_source=ig_embed" data-instgrm-version="9" style="background:#FFF;border:0;border-radius:3px;box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15);margin:1px;max-width:540px;min-width:326px;padding:0;width:calc(100% - 2px)"><div style="padding:8px"><div style="background:#F8F8F8;line-height:0;margin-top:40px;padding:50% 0;text-align:center;width:100%"><div style="background:url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAACwAAAAsCAMAAAApWqozAAAABGdBTUEAALGPC/xhBQAAAAFzUkdCAK7OHOkAAAAMUExURczMzPf399fX1+bm5mzY9AMAAADiSURBVDjLvZXbEsMgCES5/P8/t9FuRVCRmU73JWlzosgSIIZURCjo/ad+EQJJB4Hv8BFt+IDpQoCx1wjOSBFhh2XssxEIYn3ulI/6MNReE07UIWJEv8UEOWDS88LY97kqyTliJKKtuYBbruAyVh5wOHiXmpi5we58Ek028czwyuQdLKPG1Bkb4NnM+VeAnfHqn1k4+GPT6uGQcvu2h2OVuIf/gWUFyy8OWEpdyZSa3aVCqpVoVvzZZ2VTnn2wU8qzVjDDetO90GSy9mVLqtgYSy231MxrY6I2gGqjrTY0L8fxCxfCBbhWrsYYAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC);display:block;height:44px;margin:0 auto -44px;position:relative;top:-22px;width:44px"> </div></div><p style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:17px;margin-bottom:0;margin-top:8px;overflow:hidden;padding:8px 0 7px;text-align:center;text-overflow:ellipsis;white-space:nowrap"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BmF5k1aA8X_/?utm_source=ig_embed" style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;line-height:17px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">A post shared by Neil Etheridge (@neil38etheridge)</a> on <time dateTime="2018-08-05T09:28:32+00:00" style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:17px">Aug 5, 2018 at 2:28am PDT</time></div></blockquote><script async="" defer="" src="http://www.instagram.com/embed.js" type="text/javascript"></script>Etheridge qualifies for the Philippines through his mother and made his debut for the country a decade ago having previously represented England at youth level and over the past 10 years has made more than 50 appearances for the nation.The last year, though, has seen his career scale new height.After struggling at a succession of clubs, Etheridge was signed by Cardiff where he established himself as first choice goalkeeper and helped the Welsh side return to the Premier League after four seasons in the Championship.On the international front, Etheridge played a leading role in the Philippines securing a place at the finals of next year&#x27;s Asian Cup, the first time the country has qualified for the continental championship.&quot;The national team and the federation have made mistakes in the past but we&#x27;re just trying to iron everything out so that we can move forward as a country in football,&quot; said the 28-year-old.&quot;I do believe me playing in the Premier League will help, along with some sort of success in the Asian Cup.&quot;Us getting to the Asian Cup is a massive success. We&#x27;re trying our hardest. It&#x27;s not easy but we&#x27;re trying our hardest.&quot;The Philippines&#x27; preparations for January&#x27;s Asian Cup have been hit by Terry Butcher&#x27;s decision to quit as manager less than two months after signing up, having not led the team in a single training session.&quot;I think it&#x27;s tough for any Europe-based or western player, coach or manager in general to understand the culture of South East Asia and the Philippines because it&#x27;s a developing country and there has to be a lot of patience involved,&quot; says Etheridge.&quot;It&#x27;s not like other national teams or federations where you&#x27;ve got a coach from elsewhere and they live in their home country and they fly over for internationals.&quot;For a country that&#x27;s developing like the Philippines a lot of time needs to be invested being there and constantly being on top of things. Even for myself it took some time to understand the culture and how things were.&quot;Etheridge is looking forward to the challenge he faces in the coming season when he plays against some of the biggest names in the game.&quot;It&#x27;s going to be tough but we want to make sure we do enough to survive in the Premier League,&quot; he said. &quot;We&#x27;re no different to any other team that comes up from the Championship.&quot;Everything&#x27;s been going really well in preseason. It&#x27;s always tough but the team are doing well and we&#x27;re ready.&quot; (Editing by Sudipto Ganguly)For more sports coverage, visit the <a href="http://sports.abs-cbn.com">ABS-CBN Sports website</a>.

Etheridge knows his presence in the Premier League may not do much to change the sporting landscape in Manila, but he is optimistic it can have a long-term impact on local football.

Etheridge knows his presence in the Premier League may not do much to change the sporting landscape in Manila, but he is optimistic it can have a long-term impact on local football.

Neil Etheridge hopes Premier League presence can make impact in PH

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Sports

Metro.Style

More

Traffic

Manila

Horoscope

Sports

Neil Etheridge hopes Premier League presence can make impact in PH

Michael Church,

Reuters

Published Aug 11, 2018 05:41 AM PHT

|

Updated Aug 11, 2018 09:42 AM PHT

Read More:

2018-19 Premier League

Neil Etheridge

Azkals

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

AI Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.