THE Philippines advanced to the quarterfinals of the women’s football tournament at the 2026 Asian Games despite a 5-1 loss to China on Monday, Sept. 21.
The Filipinas finished third in Group G with one win, one draw, and one loss, earning one of the two spots for the best third-placed teams in the group stage.
Under competition regulations, the top two teams from each group and the two best third-placed teams will advance to the quarterfinals.
China, meanwhile, topped the group with two wins and a draw and will face Vietnam in the quarterfinals.
According to Xinhua News Agency, Wang Yanwen scored a hat-trick, while Chen Qiaozhu and Yuan Cong also found the net as China controlled the match from the outset.
China opened the scoring in the 20th minute when Zhang Rui sent a diagonal cross from the right that Wang headed home.
Wang doubled China’s lead in the 40th minute with a curling effort from the edge of the penalty area after China’s high press forced a turnover.
Four minutes into the second half, Wang Shuang set up Chen, who surged into the penalty area and poked the ball home to make it 3-0.
Wang Yanwen completed her hat-trick five minutes later with another header.
The Philippines pulled one back in the 65th minute after a corner kick exposed a communication error in China’s defense. Skye Leach was in the right place at the far post to tap the ball into an empty net.
China restored its four-goal cushion in stoppage time when Zhang Chengxue’s shot struck the post before Yuan followed up at the far post.
China began its group campaign with a 5-1 victory over Hong Kong and drew 1-1 with Uzbekistan.
Uzbekistan finished second in Group G after beating Hong Kong 2-1 on Monday. Hong Kong ended the group stage with three defeats.
The Philippines will face Japan in the quarterfinals on Friday. The other matches will pit China against Vietnam, DPR Korea against Chinese Taipei, and South Korea against Uzbekistan. / LBG
