By Michael Angelo S. Murillo, Senior Reporter
Spanish striker Bienvenido Marañon can play for the Philippine national men’s football team in international competitions after his Filipino citizenship was made official.
On Wednesday it was announced that President Rodrigo R. Duterte had signed Republic Act 11570 granting Philippine citizenship to Mr. Marañon, 35, paving the way for him to don the country’s colors as a naturalized player.
Mr. Maranon has been playing in the local professional league since 2015 and has steadily built his standing as a solid scorer, earning the interest of the Philippine Azkals.
The striker’s naturalization papers were submitted around the same as that of now-Gilas Pilipinas player Angelo Koaume of Ivory Coast. But unlike that of the latter, Mr. Marañon’s took a while to be approved and signed pending completion of some requirements.
The delay made Mr. Marañon miss the Azkals’ campaign in the jFIFA World Cup qualifiers in June.
Now granted citizenship, Mr. Marañon is now expected to be part of the Azkals’ pool in their upcoming tournaments, including the next round of the 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers, apart from playing for Philippines Football League champion United City Football Club.
Mr. Marañon is currently with United City in Uzbekistan, playing in the AFC Champions League.