CTFA International Tournament

The CTFA International Tournament (Chinese: 2017中華足協國際邀請賽) was a tier 1 international football competition held in Taipei, Taiwan from 1-5 December 2017, organized by the Chinese Taipei Football Association (CTFA).[1] Results involving the Philippines national football team led to strong reactions by Filipino football fans, and disputes between football administrators.[2] The six games in the tournament were authorized by FIFA as International “A” Matches.[3]

2017 CTFA International Tournament
2017中華足協國際邀請賽
Tournament details
Host countryTaiwan
Dates1–5 December
Teams4 (from 1 confederation)
Venue(s)1 (in 1 host city)
Final positions
Champions Chinese Taipei (1st title)
Runners-up Philippines
Third place Timor-Leste
Fourth place Laos
Tournament statistics
Matches played6
Goals scored17 (2.83 per match)
Top scorer(s)Chinese Taipei Li Mao (4 goals)

Participating nations

Four nations participated in the tournament.[4]

NationFIFA rankingNotes
Chinese Taipei Chinese Taipei135Hosts
Laos Laos184
Philippines Philippines118The Philippines were initially planning to send the national under-23 squad, but decided to include national team players from Davao Aguilas and Stallion Laguna. Most of the coaching and backroom staff were from the national under-23 team.[5][3]
East Timor Timor-Leste196

Venue
TaipeiTaiwan
Taipei Municipal Stadium
CTFA International Tournament is located in Taiwan
National Stadium
National Stadium
CTFA International Tournament (Taiwan)
Capacity: 20,000

Matches
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Tiebreaker
 Chinese Taipei 330081+79—
 Philippines 310235–233–2
 Timor-Leste 310235–232–2
 Laos 310236–333–4
Laos 1–3 Philippines
Kongmathilath 90+5' Report
Taipei Municipal Stadium, Taipei
Referee: Yu Ming-Hsun (Chinese Taipei)
Laos 2–1 Timor-Leste
 Report Cruz 84'
Taipei Municipal Stadium, Taipei
Referee: Chen Hsin-Chuan (Chinese Taipei)
Chinese Taipei 3–0 Philippines
 Report
Taipei Municipal Stadium, Taipei
Referee: Pranjal Banerjee (India)
Chinese Taipei 3–1 Timor-Leste
 Report Gama 58'
Taipei Municipal Stadium, Taipei
Referee: Ali Al Samaheeji (Bahrain)
Timor-Leste 1–0 Philippines
Garcia 89' Report
Taipei Municipal Stadium, Taipei
Referee: Kao Jung-Fang (Chinese Taipei)
Chinese Taipei 2–0 Laos
Li Mao 9', 12' Report
Taipei Municipal Stadium, Taipei
Referee: Pranjal Banerjee (India)
 CTFA International Tournament winner 

Chinese Taipei
First title

Goalscorers

There were 17 goals scored in 6 matches, for an average of 2.83 goals per match.

4 goals

2 goals

1 goal

Aftermath

After the 1-2 win–loss result by the Philippines national football team, particularly the loss to 196th-ranked Timor-Leste on the seventh anniversary of the "Miracle in Hanoi", Philippines fans reacted with disappointment and anger.[8] Former national team manager Dan Palami joined in criticism of team selection, although the Philippines Football Federation was limited by player commitments to teams involved in the 2017 Philippines Football League finals series.[9] The decision to send a team to the tournament during the PFL finals was also questioned, along with concern about the expected effect on the Philippines national team's FIFA World Ranking,[8] which subsequently dropped six spots in the December 2017 FIFA rankings.[10] Vietnam surpassed the Philippines as top national men's team in Southeast Asia.[11] Jefferson Cheng, manager of the CTFA International Tournament team and owner of Davao Aguilas FC, defended selection decisions, asking that supporters consider the value of giving young players experience in International “A” Matches.[2]

In contrast, the Chinese Taipei Football Association reacted enthusiastically to the Chinese Taipei 3-0 tournament victory, reporting it as a high point in their history.[12]

The Timor-Leste national team was reported by the Taipei Times to be "delighted" by their unexpected win over the Philippines after losing each of their earlier games by one goal.[13] Timor-Leste rose five spots in the December 2017 FIFA rankings on the strength of this win.[14]

Notes
  1. Originally scheduled for 1 December but postponed because the Timor Leste team could not arrive in Taiwan on time due to the eruption of Mount Agung.[6][7]

References
  1. "2017中華足協國際邀請賽 吹響明年進攻號角" (in Chinese). Chinese Taipei Football Association. 10 November 2017. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  2. "Football: Conflict erupts after Azkals' losses in Taiwan tilt". ABS-CBN News. 7 December 2017. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  3. Guerrero, Bob (28 November 2017). "Azkals to join pocket tournament in Taiwan". Rappler. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  4. "Philippines in Four Nations meet". ASEAN Football Federation. 20 November 2017. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  5. "Philippines National Team In CTFA International Tournament". Philippines Football Federation. 28 November 2017. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  6. "Timor-Leste Men's Football Team Meet Natural Disaster Delay in Arrival Time and Chinese Taipei Men's Football Schedule Delayed" (in Chinese (Taiwan)). Chinese Taipei Football Association. 1 December 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  7. Pan, Jason (2 December 2017). "Philippines down Laos, East Timor delayed". Taipei Times. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  8. Guerrero, Bob (7 December 2017). "Why Azkals fans shouldn't panic about the losses in Taiwan". Rappler. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
  9. Cabatbat, Erel (6 December 2017). "PFF still silent on Taiwan 'debacle'". fastbreak.com.ph. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  10. "PH Azkals drop six spots in FIFA rankings". ABS-CBN News. 21 December 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  11. "Azkals drop six spots in latest FIFA World Rankings". ABS-CBN News. 21 December 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  12. "Football Association Invitational / 59-year championship taste of the Chinese team kicked victory glory". www.ctfa.com.tw (in Chinese (Taiwan)). 6 December 2017. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
  13. Pan, Jason (6 December 2017). "Taiwan beat Laos, claim CTFA17 title - Taipei Times". Taipei Times. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
  14. "Men's Ranking". FIFA.com. 21 December 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
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