Zachary Taningco

Last updated

Zachary Taningco
Personal information
Full name Zachary Cagaanan Taningco [1]
Date of birth (2004-10-08) 8 October 2004 (age 20)
Place of birth Manila, Philippines
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Position(s) Full-back / Midfielder
Team information
Current team
Manila Digger
Number 22
Youth career
British School Manila
GOM Academy
Stallion Laguna
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2022–2023 Azkals Development Team 2 (0)
2024 United City 12 (0)
2024– Manila Digger 19 (0)
International career
2019 Philippines U17 9 (0)
2022 Philippines U19 6 (0)
2025– Philippines U23 5 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 03:27, 17 August 2025 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 03:27, 17 August 2025 (UTC)

Zachary Cagaanan "Ziggy" Taningco (born 8 October 2004) is a Filipino professional footballer who plays as a midfielder and full-back for Philippines Football League club Manila Digger and the Philippines under-23 national team. [1] [2]

Contents

Youth Career

Taningco was born in Manila, Philippines. [1] He studied at British School Manila [3] and played youth football for Great Oaks Manor (GOM) Academy and for the youth team of PFL club Stallion Laguna. [4] He also studies in Ateneo de Manila University.

Club career

In 2022, Taningco, played for the Azkals Development Team of the Philippines Football League during the 2022–23 season. [5] [6] He made his debut in a 2–0 loss to Stallion.

Before the start of the 2024 season, Taningco was signed by local heavyweight United City, making his debut in the league's opening matchday in a 2–0 loss to Kaya–Iloilo. [4] He became the team's starting right-back that season, though United City withdrew from the league at the season's end.

Taningco would sign for Manila Digger before the 2024–25 season, becoming a first-team starter as the club finished as runners-up in both the PFL and the Finals Series. [7] In 2025, Digger played their first-ever AFC match in the AFC Champions League Two qualifiers, where Taningco played right back as the team lost 2–1 to Persib Bandung. [8] [9]

International career

Philippines U16

Taningco received his first call-up to the Philippines under-17 national team in 2019 for the 2019 AFF U-15 Championship, making his debut in a 7–1 loss against Timor Leste. [10] [11] He was called up again later that year for the 2020 AFC U-16 Championship Qualifiers. [12]

Philippines U19

Three years later, Taningco was called up to the under-19 national team to participate in the 2022 AFF U-19 Championship, debuting in a narrow 1–0 loss to Thailand. [13] He represented the country once more later that year in the 2023 AFC U-20 Asian Cup qualifiers. [5] [14]

Philippines U23

For the 2025 ASEAN U-23 Championship, Taningco was once again called up for the under-23 team, and made his debut on the opening matchday as the Philippines upset Malaysia 2–0. [15] He played at right-back as the country clinched its first-ever semifinal in the competition, eventually finishing fourth. [16]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Zachary Taningco - Global Sports Archive". Global Sports Archive. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  2. Zachary Taningco at Soccerway
  3. Guerrero, Bob (5 August 2025). "Homegrown Footballers are Making Their Mark on National Youth Teams". The Game. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  4. 1 2 "United City FC Welcomes Young Defensive Talent: Ziggy Taningco Joins the Squad". United City . Archived from the original on 7 February 2025. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  5. 1 2 Olivares, Rick (14 September 2022). "Azkals U19's Ziggy Taningco: We can compete in Oman". Philstar. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  6. Kristianto, Kevin (7 July 2022). "Daftar Pemain Filipina U19 untuk Piala AFF U19 2022". Kompas. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  7. Rosal, Glendale (5 May 2025). "Cebu FC crowned PFL Finals Series champs, books spot in AFF Shopee Cup". Cebu Daily News. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  8. Faraz, Raffy (13 August 2025). "Manila Digger Tak Silau Dengan Reputasi Besar Persib". Vivagoal. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  9. "ACL 2: Pendatang Baru Manila Digger Siap Uji Kekuatan Persib Bandung". Jpnn.com. 13 August 2025. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  10. "Philippines U15 Boys in AFF U15 Championship 2019". pff.org.ph. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  11. "Match Summary - Timor Leste 7-1 Philippines" (PDF). ASEAN Football Federation . Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  12. "Philippines Under-15 Return to Action in AFC U16 Championship 2020 Qualifiers". pff.org.ph. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  13. "Match Summary - Thailand 1-0 Philippines" (PDF). ASEAN Football Federation . Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  14. Rosal, Glendale (12 September 2022). "Philippine booters to play in AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers in Oman". Cebu Daily News. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  15. "Philippines Stuns Malaysia in U23 ASEAN Mandiri Cup Opener". pff.org.ph. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  16. Tan, Gabriel (27 July 2025). "Third place could still be a triumph for Philippines at ASEAN U-23 Championship". ESPN Philippines. Retrieved 17 August 2025.