In a case of déjà vu, a familiar face has been appointed to lead the Philippine Azkals after almost 10 years since his first stint.
The Philippine Football Federation announced on Tuesday that German football manager Hans Michael Weiß had been reappointed as the head coach of the Azkals, succeeding Barae Jrondi after the Moroccan’s two-match stint.
“We are delighted to welcome coach Weiss back to the PHI MNT,” said PFF president Mariano “Nonong” Araneta. “He has kept the Philippines close to his heart and continues to be a well-respected figure by players and staff.”
Weiß first took charge of the Azkals from 2011 to 2014. Under his watch, the Philippines went as high as 127 in the FIFA World Rankings. He led the country to a third-placed finish in the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup and a semifinal appearance in the 2012 AFF Suzuki Cup.
Following his stint with the Philippines, the 58-year-old mentor took charge of Mongolia and Laos. He led the Mongolians to five wins, three draws, and 11 defeats from 2017 to 2020. During the Dannenfels native’s time with Laos, he took over the country’s youth teams aside from the senior team.
He is the 16th appointment to take charge of the team since the fabled Miracle of Hanoi during the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup. There is no word as to how long his contract will be for his second stint with the Azkals.
“He has also gained valuable experience over the past decade that will help him in his return to the Philippines. We are hopeful that his second opportunity to the team will be more successful than the first,” said Araneta.
There will be a mix of old and new faces for Weiß’ side that will take on Nepal and Chinese Taipei on June 15 and June 19 respectively at Rizal Memorial.
Neil Etheridge, Patrick Deyto, and Julian Schwarzer will compete to start in goal. The likes of Amani Aguinaldo, Martin Steuble, Jesper Nyholm, Santiago Rublico, Marco Casambre, Carli De Murga, and Daisuke Sato will target a place in the backline.
When it comes to the midfield, Dylan De Bruycker, Manny Ott, Jesse Curran, Jared Pena, Mike Ott, Sandro Reyes, Gio Pabualan, Oskari Kekkonen, Kevin Ingreso, and Hikaru Minegishi will look to stamp their spot in the middle of the park.
Lastly, Jarvey Gayoso, Patrick Reichelt, OJ Porteria, Kenshiro Daniels, Bienvenido Maranon, and Andres Aldeguer will look to score the goals upfront.
