2021 ACL Group Stage: Viettel FC vs. Kaya FC-Iloilo Match 6 — In Kaya's final bid for Champions League points, they'll once again have to face the champions of Vietnam.

Kaya FC-Iloilo will get one final chance to put a stamp on their inaugural AFC Champions League campaign, one filled with a lot of learning and growth for the Filipino side. The team has been busy getting ready for their chance at redemption—a rematch with the Vietnamese champions Viettel FC. Kickoff is scheduled for July 11th, 6pm Philippine time.

“Our preparation has been good as always. I just wanted to pay tribute to our medical staff—to Eunice Maliuanag, Jolo Catipon, and Joshua Castelo—they’ve done an incredible job,” commended Coach Graham Harvey. “This is our seventh game in eighteen days and we have a fully fit squad, so we are proud of the work that they have done in delivering our players.”

“Defensively, our structure has been tested since we’ve been here; but we’ve certainly risen to that challenge. We really are making sure we’re doing everything we can to get some points in our last game.”

Goalkeeper Zach Banzon also reflected on the team’s experience playing on the ACL stage for the first time. Sporting a sizeable bruise sustained in his brave showing against BG Pathum United, he was asked what he believes Kaya will be taking home with them after the competition.

“We’ve been getting better with every match. I think the biggest takeaway that we have is that we feel like we belong in this level. We can continue to keep playing in the Champions League, and when we come back to the PFL (Philippines Football League), we hope that we bring this level to that.”

“We go into every game thinking that we can win. We prepare well and we believe in ourselves, so of course we think that we can pick up some points next time,” Banzon added. “No matter what happens tomorrow, we’ll do our best and hopefully come up with better results.”

Coach Harvey echoed that sentiment, saying, “Firstly, we want to make sure that we’re back here again next year. We are definitely doing everything in our power to learn from these experiences so that; as Zach said, when we go back to the PFL, we’re in a position to be the champions of the Philippines.”

The last meeting with Viettel did not exactly go according to plan—Kaya falling down 5-0 in what was their worst loss of the tournament, by far. With that said, the squad has looked better and better in each of the following matches. Looking to end their time in Thailand on a positive note, Coach Harvey had this to say about the team’s mindset going into their final match.

“Exactly the same as we had for all of our games. I’ve always said since we’ve been here, we want to play our style. Viettel remain having not conceded a goal against us, so defensively there’s some areas there that we’re looking to exploit”

Coach continued, “We’ll make sure we play our brand of football. Our mentality is the same as always—we’ll be hard to beat; defensively we’ll be solid; and make sure when we have our opportunities, we try and exploit them.”