Published June 1, 2021, 5:20 PM The Philippine Azkals will play their Group A matches in the joint qualifiers of the World Cup and Asian Cup in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates instead of Suzhou, China. The Asian Football Confederation confirmed the change of venue Tuesday, June 1 after Maldives and Syria were prevented entry in China due to COVID-19 infections. Even the Azkals were dealt with a less-severe situation after China barred two officials who tested positive for the coronavirus but possibly due to being vaccinated recently, and two more who despite having negative results had a prior history of infection. OFFICIAL The remaining seven #AsianQualifiers Group A matches set to be played in UAE!https://t.co/yXv2SWN3CB — AFC (@theafcdotcom) June 1, 2021