Sporting Kansas City midfielder Martin Steuble played the full 90 minutes as the Philippines cruised past Laos 4-1 Saturday in the opening match of the 2014 Asean Football Federation Suzuki Cup in Hanoi, Vietnam.
Simone Rota and Phil Younghusband scored late in the first half to cancel out Khampheng Sayavutthi’s 21st-minute opener before second half substitute Patrick Reichelt’s brace sealed the result.
Earning his 13th career cap for the Azkals, Steuble recorded two shots, two chances created and 90 percent passing accuracy on the right side of midfield as the Philippines surged atop Group A. Co-hosts Vietnam battled Indonesia to a 2-2 draw in the group’s other Saturday fixture.
The Philippines—ranked No. 129 in the latest FIFA rankings—will stay in Hanoi for the remainder of the group stage. Head coach Thomas Dooley’s squad faces Indonesia on Tuesday and Vietnam on Friday. The top two teams from Groups A and B will advance to the two-legged semifinals beginning Saturday, Dec. 6.
Steuble, 26, joined Sporting KC on July 16 from Swiss club FC Wil 1900. He featured in the club's international friendly against Manchester City on July 23 before making his MLS debut against the Philadelphia Union on Aug. 1 for the first of three league appearances.
The midfielder previously spent his entire professional career in Switzerland, featuring for FC Wil 1900, Grasshopper Zurich, Lausanne Sport, FC Wohlen, and Neuchâtel Xamax. Steuble committed to the Philippines Men's National Team in 2013 and made his international debut this March. He competed in the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup in May, helping the Philippines to a second place finish.
Steuble is one of seven Sporting KC players to feature in international matches in 2014 along with Matt Besler (USA), Graham Zusi (USA), Lawrence Olum (Kenya), Jorge Claros (Honduras), Soony Saad (Lebanon) and Erik Palmer Brown (USA U-20).
