The Philippines have confirmed the appointment of former Gambia coach Tom Saintfiet as their new national team head coach.
Saintfiet quit as the Gambia coach after the country’s group-stage exit from the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in the Ivory Coast.
The 50-year-old Belgian signed a two-year deal with the Asian country and he is tasked to create a new identity for the Philippines football team as they challenge for a place in the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2027 AFC Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.
Saintfeit took over as the Gambia coach in July 2018 and he steered the West African country to their maiden appearance at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon where they reached the quarter-final.
Two years later, the coach led the country to another AFCON outing in the Ivory Coast but they failed to make it out of the group stage. S
Saintfeit previously coached African countries like Namibia, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Malawi and Togo and he is not new to Asian football, having managed Qatar Stars League club, Al-Gharafa, Qatar U17 national team and Bangladesh senior national team.
His first task as the Philippines head coach would against Iraq in the double-header Asian World Cup qualifiers scheduled for March 21 and 26.
