New coach for Philippines XI

MANILA, Philippines — A new era starts for the Philippine men’s football team, which is no longer going by the old “Azkals” moniker, under Belgian coach Tom Saintfiet.

Saintfiet, who has had an accomplished coaching career in Africa, is taking over from Michael Weiss in the rejigged program aimed at winning the Asean crown and qualifying for the Asian Cup and ultimately the FIFA World Cup.

“He’s the perfect match for us and what we want to achieve,” said PFF director of national teams Freddy Gonzalez.