Photo: Alen Stajcic. | Photo from the PFF Website
CEBU CITY, Philippines—Decorated Australian football coach Alen Stajcic replaced Marlon Maro as the new head coach of the Philippine Women’s National Team.
Maro, who will be leading the Philippine Football Federation’s (PFF) Coaching Education department, passed the coaching helm to Stajcic, a familiar face in the Philippine football scene.
The 47-year-old Stajcic already coached the Malditas during the 2015 qualifiers of the FIFA Women’s World Cup. wherein they reached the quarterfinals.
Stajcic is highly renowned for leading the Australian Women’s football squad in the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2015 and the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
He also steered the Aussie women’s squad to the Rio Summer Olympics’s women’s football quarterfinals in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2016.
In a statement posted in the PFF official website, PFF President Mariano Araneta Jr. warmly welcomed Stajcic.
“We are thrilled that Alen Stajcic has accepted the position to be the head coach of the Philippine Women’s National Team head coach,” said Araneta. “His appointment shows the commitment and determination of the PFF to give our women’s national team the best possible chance to qualify for the FIFA Women’s World Cup.”
PFF general secretary Edwin Gastanes and the Malditas’ manager Jefferson Ceng also welcomed the Aussie coach and expressed their confidence for his presence in improving the team.
The Philippine Women’s National Team qualified for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup in January 2022 in India.
This as they topped the Group F of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup qualifiers held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan last September.
They beat Hong Kong and Nepal in their scheduled matches.
/bmjo