Phil Younghusband

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Philip James Younghusband (born August 4, 1987) is an English-Filipino professional football player currently attached to Chelsea F.C.'s academy. He plays as a striker and turned professional in March 2005, having been at the club since the age of ten.

[edit] Childhood and career

Philip was born in Ashford, Middlesex, England, the son of Philip Younghusband, a chartered accountant and Susan Younghusband, a Filipina.

He was the youth team's top scorer in the 2003/2004 season and made his first reserve start in November 2004. In the 2005/2006 season, Phil made 21 appearances for the Chelsea reserve team, including 18 starts, and scored five goals. He also made one appearance as a substitute for the Chelsea youth team.

Phil's older brother, James, is no longer attached to Chelsea and is with local London team AFC Wimbledon. Both brothers played for the Philippines Under-23 national squad in the 2005 Southeast Asian Games. Phil scored two goals in the Philippines 4-2 loss to Malaysia. He is now part of the seniors Philippine national team.

Early in 2005, the Philippine Football Federation was alerted to Younghusband's eligibility by a mysterious gamer who allegedly found out about their lineage via a PlayStation 2 game.^{[citation needed]} He and his older brother James were eventually called up to the Southeast Asian nation's football squad, amidst much fanfare. Younghusband participated in the 2005 Southeast Asian Games, which was held in the Philippines, scoring two goals at the tournament.

They are due back in the Philippines in November for the much awaited ASEAN Championship Qualifying Tournament.