Bandoja goal provides silver lining as Filipina5 end FIFA Futsal World Cup run

MANILA, Philippines – An electrifying goal by Isabella Bandoja provided a silver lining even as host Philippines wrapped up its FIFA Futsal Women’s World Cup run without a win following a 5-1 loss to Argentina at the PhilSports Arena on Thursday, November 27.

Bandoja prevented a shutout loss by finding the back of the net at the 28th minute, giving the home crowd a reason to celebrate despite a campaign that ended in a 0-3 record as the Filipina5 also absorbed a 6-0 beating from Poland and a painful 3-2 defeat to Morocco.

“We gave it our all. Everything that we put in training, from the start of the World Cup up to this last game, we laid it all out,” said Bandoja in Filipino. 

Ranked sixth in the world, the Argentinians came out with guns blazing as they raced to a 5-0 lead just seven minutes into the match, with goals coming from Lara Villalba, Mailen Romero, Luciana Natta, Agostina Chiesa, and Melina Quevedo.

But even for just one moment, that sizable deficit hardly mattered after Bandoja converted off an assist by Isabella Flanigan, driving the ball past Argentina goalkeeper Silvina Espinazo.

“I wanted to score. Even if it was just one goal, I wanted our team to get a score. That was the only thing on my mind when I had the ball,” said Bandoja. 

The goal sent the 2,811-strong crowd to jubilation as Bandoja became the third Filipina goalscorer in this World Cup after Dionesa Tolentin and Cathrine Graversen.

“It was an honor to represent our country, in front of our home crowd. All of the girls just fought and I’m extremely proud of everyone,” said Philippine goalkeeper Samantha Hughes. 

“No matter what the result was, the home crowd was cheering us on. It was just bringing the vibes up.” 

Argentina ended the group stage unbeaten and advanced to the knockout round alongside Morocco, which finished second after a 1-0 win over Poland earlier on Thursday. – Rappler.com