After winning four titles in one season, Neil Etheridge is already set to get back in business.
Neil Etheridge is fresh off the heels of his first season playing for Buriram United in the Thai League 1, and he is on a major high, as the squad lifted their fourth trophy of the 2024-25 season last night.
After finishing the 2024-25 season with 24 clean sheets across four competitions, the Filipino goalkeeper was part of a history-making Buriram side that completed the “quadruple”: winning the Thai League 1 title, the the AFF ASEAN Club Championship (also known as the Shopee Cup), the Thai FA Cup, and most recently, the Thai League Cup — four titles in one season.
“[It’s been] a fantastic season for us,” Neil Etheridge reflected in a virtual press conference after the team’s fourth victory. “This is the first time the club have ever done the quadruple…So for me, being here on my first season, to complete the quadruple is a bit of a dream come true, to be honest.”
He continued, “It’s been a long year. There’s been a lot of stuff going on off the field and on the field for me. I’m happy that I’ve been able to round this season off with four trophies.”
The Filipino goalkeeper made the transfer to Buriram United in Thailand in June 2024, after spending his entire career playing in the United Kingdom. He even became the first Filipino to play in the English Premier League, a milestone he has become well-known for around the world.
Now, at 35 years old, he is finally getting a richer taste of Southeast Asian football — and he’s loving it.
“[Buriran United is] a fantastic club, love it to pieces, love my time here, there’s a lot of hard work throughout the season.”
A season for the books
Neil Etheridge played a huge role in Buriram United’s stellar season. He kept 16 clean sheets out of 30 matches in the Thai League 1, the most for the season. He also recorded five clean sheets in the AFC Champions League Elite. And to secure the historic quadruple, he again protected Buriram’s 2-0 lead in the League Cup final against the Lamphun Warriors to win their fourth title of the season.
This is a remarkable performance, especially coming from an athlete who just played his first season in Southeast Asia.
“It was a big transition for me to go from Europe to Asia…The demands are extremely high at this club. The demands are there, but at the same time, when you walk away with four trophies, it’s extremely satisfying. It’s more than satisfying.”
To make this victory even sweeter is the fact that the former Philippine Men’s National Team captain got to celebrate this victory with the Filipinos in Thailand.
“There were pictures today with Filipino supporters, which I’m sure have gone around the internet. As you know, for many years, [I’ve been] a very proud Filipino. Always wear the flag across my chest,” he said with pride.
Following a successful first season with Buriram United, Neil is now heading into the off-season break — though he emphasizes that it won’t be a long one.
“We’ve only got four weeks off, so off-season is spent by my family,” he explained. “There’s not many days off in the season, there’s a lot of traveling. Like I said, we’re in four cup competitions, five cup competitions, including the Champions League…That means we’re going to travel to at least three other countries. Champions League, I think it’s eight games. That’s another four countries. So I’m not home a lot. There’s a lot of traveling.”
With a heavy schedule, Neil will be spending the next few weeks with family: “Enjoy my time with my daughter and my wife. See my dad,” he shared.
But the former Premier League keeper will be back to training in no time.
“Like I said before, there’s no stopping. I think, you know, I’m 35 now. It’s not a holiday. I’ve got one week off, and then for me to be back in the gym, getting better. You know, I’ve got some personal goals that I want to reach next year. So I’ve got to get fit. I don’t want to lose fitness. I want to be fitter, stronger, more competitive going into next season.”
Though the taste of victory is still fresh, winning four titles only puts additional pressure heading into next season. As Neil puts it, “We’ve got four titles to defend. That’s my mentality.”
Thus, Neil Etheridge is more than ready to go at it again next season.
“I’m focusing on improving myself, getting better, getting fitter, getting stronger. I’m working with a great goalkeeping coach here at Buriram. I think that he can give me at least another 20-30% on my game, better than this season.
“I want to break the record again next season. [I got] 16 clean sheets [this season]. I want more than that next year.”
Banner image taken by Kieran Punay of KLIQ Inc.