Welcome to the Trequartista Sweeper, or what used to be the news tidbits piece for Soccer Central Philippines. The feature is all about making an effort to cover everything in and around football, whether it is local or international.The decision to name it as such is to combine the elements of an attacking and a defending position, making sure you get as much coverage as possible. It is hoped that we are able to give you some little snippets of football to interest you, the reader.

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By the end of today, the members of the Senior National Football Team would have arrived back in Manila from their sojourn. They won one match, against Qatari club Al-Ahly (3-1) and losing two, both against the Olympic sides of Uzbekistan (3-0) and Australia (1-0). It is important and essential to remind ourselves as to why there was a need for them to stay out there in the Gulf. It is not about just wins and losses, but how we played and what we do not see in the television screens. Which brings us to the first question. What was the logic for the Middle Eastern camp in the first place.

According to Coach Michael Weiss, the camp was a success, despite the 3-0 loss against Uzbekistan Under-23 side, the team bounced back against Al Ahli and despite missing the Younghusband brothers, the team made it up through their fighting spirit even though they lost against the Australian Under-23 side.

If it was to get the Filipino community together, then it was sort of met with the people watching the match, although there was expectation of a larger crowd. If it was for training and chemistry, then there are still things that need to be worked on, that we can surmise from the games we all stayed up for. At the same time, there are encouraging signs.

For starters, given all the flak that Jason Sabio had last year playing for the national team, it is pleasing that his current form with Kaya FC has translated well. Weiss has also noted that the partnership of Sabio along with Juan Luis Guirado made the most impression to the German along with midfielder Marwin Angeles. With Aly Borromeo and Rob Gier still recovering from injuries, that hole has been adequately addressed until the two return. We know what we can get from the brothers Younghusband, and when they left early for the Philippines, Stallion FC captain Ruben Doctora and Kaya FC's Joshua Beloya provided the offensive oomph as substitutes. Bob Guerrero named Denis Wolf as his Man of the Match after his effort in the final match. Hopefully, he would be available to play in the AFC Challenge Cup.

Still, questions remain with Michael Weiss. Points have been raised about from his criticisms on internal issues, the excuses he has constantly provided or what can be said as expectation settings, to this gameday decision-making. Certain individuals have called for the relief of his head coaching duties. To echo what Michael Limpag has stated, replacing him with the AFC Challenge Cup being weeks away is akin to suicide. But certain criticisms are valid, starting with something that is very apparent and obvious, his non-presence in club football matches. I honestly do not know what he does with his spare time, but what I know is that I have only seen him watch club football once or twice to observe the matches, which makes his criticism towards club football a head-scratcher. Contrast that to the Under-21 coaching staff who in a span of like a couple of weeks, has watched all of the UFL teams practice and even checks on the UAAP. As much as people would like to see our Europe-based members of the national pool, the fact that the tournament is not included in the FIFA Calendar, which ensures clubs are not guaranteed to release players to national team duty, means that it is unlikely that guys like our Fil-Danish duo will be released for duty. As such, then we should be looking from within, since the UFL has acquiesced not to have Division 1 matches during the span of the competition. Still, I trust and believe in what our national team can do. Hopefully, they can repay that faith and belief with a stellar performance weeks from now.