New Philippine men's national team coach Albert Capellas. Handout/PFF-PMNFT

MANILA -- Spaniard Albert Capellas is the new head coach of the Philippine men's national football team, the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) announced on Tuesday.

Capellas, 56, replaces Tom Saintfiet, who left the post in late August ahead of the Philippines' campaign in the 2024 Merdeka Cup. Norman Fegidero Jr. served as the team's interim coach.

READ: Coach Tom Saintfiet leaves PH men's football team for Mali

Freddy Gonzalez, the PFF's director of senior national teams, called Capellas an "incredibly good fit" for the squad.

"[He is] a man who embodies  our idea of how the game should be played, and who’s had decades of experience successfully  implementing  this  style  in  various  elite  performance  environments  across  Europe  and  in  Asia," said Gonzalez.

Capellas brings with him 33 years of coaching experience, including over a decade with FC Barcelona. He was most recently the coach of FC Midtjylland in Denmark, having called the shots for Denmark's Under-21 team before that stint. 

"I'm very proud to be a part of this journey. For me it’s a fantastic feeling to be here, to help the  Federation to go to the next level because that’s what they are looking for," Capellas said in a statement. 

"When Freddy asked  me to join this project and explained to me what they are working on to make the federation  better, and to deliver the best for the players, and how he wanted to approach football for the  coming  years in  the  Philippine  teams,  I was  aligned  and it  piqued my  attention," he added.

"It won’t be easy — nothing in  football is — but we can  promise that we will do our best."

Capellas observed the team during the Merdeka Cup, where they turned in promising performances before eventually finishing last in the four-team tournament. 

READ: Despite short preparation, interim coach says PH football team to give a 'good fight' in Merdeka Cup

READ: PMNFT settles for fourth place in Merdeka Cup after shootout defeat against Tajikistan

According to the PFF, Capellas intends to use the upcoming FIFA windows in October and November as well as the ASEAN Championships in December to accelerate the development of the team, as their goal is to qualify for the 2027 Asian Cup.

"It won’t be easy. This is a project. It will be a journey, a process. There will be ups and downs.  Sometimes we will fail. Our job is to make sure we learn from the failures," Capellas said. 

"We will  try to climb the mountain with a safe journey and go as far as possible," he added. "I hope the fans will be  able to see the changes in October, and in November and December. But it won’t be everything  at one time."

Fegidero will now be Capellas' assistant in the national team.