 Aguinaldo with thePhilippines in 2015 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Amani Manuel Santos Aguinaldo | ||
| Date of birth | (1995-04-24)April 24, 1995 (age 30) | ||
| Place of birth | Las Piñas, Philippines | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position | Center-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | DPMM | ||
| Number | 5 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2012–2013 | Loyola | ||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Far Eastern University | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2012–2013 | Loyola | 0 | (0) |
| 2013–2017 | Global | 42 | (3) |
| 2018–2019 | Ceres-Negros | 19 | (1) |
| 2019 | →PKNP (loan) | 16 | (1) |
| 2020–2021 | Trat | 17 | (0) |
| 2021–2022 | Nongbua Pitchaya | 19 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | Nakhon Ratchasima | 26 | (2) |
| 2023–2024 | Trat | 14 | (1) |
| 2024–2025 | Rayong | 26 | (4) |
| 2025– | DPMM | 8 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2013 | Philippines U19 | 6 | (0) |
| 2012–2014 | Philippines U21 | (0) | |
| 2012 | Philippines U22 | 2 | (0) |
| 2013 | Philippines U23 | 2 | (0) |
| 2019 | Philippines Olympic | 4 | (3) |
| 2013– | Philippines | 72 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 24 November 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 18 November 2025 | |||
Amani Manuel Santos Aguinaldo (born April 24, 1995) is a Filipino professionalfootballer who plays as acenter-back forMalaysia Super League clubDPMM and thePhilippines national team.[1][2]
Aguinaldo attendedAteneo de Davao Grade School until grade 6 and transferred to the High School DepartmentFar Eastern University'sFERN College inQuezon City where he attended high school.[3]Aguinaldo is takingSports Science at theUniversity of the Philippines Diliman. As of December 2014,[update] he is on his second year.[4]
After Aguinaldo was scouted by CoachKim Chul-soo and program director Vince Santos both fromFar Eastern University, which prompted him to transfer toFar Eastern University – FERN College where he attended high school. He played a year with theFar Eastern University at the college level before moving to theUniversity of the Philippines.[3]
He was later signed with theLoyola Meralco Sparks where he debuted as a substitute player at Loyala's stint at the2012 Singapore Cup. He later transferred toGlobal.[3] in 2013. In 2018, he moved to another Filipino clubCeres-Negros. Ceres-Negros placed him on loan to Malaysian clubPKNP where he played in the2019 Malaysia Super League. In January 2020, he was signed for Thai clubTrat ahead of the2020 Thai League 1 season.[5]
After Trat FC's relegation to2021–22 Thai League 2, he was acquired byNongbua Pitchaya as their ASEAN quota for2021–22 Thai League 1.[6] In August 2022, he was signed by Thai ClubNakhon Ratchasima ahead of the2022–23 Thai League 1.[7] He would later return at Trat at the start of the2023–24 Thai League 1.
After becoming a regular fixture at the heart of the defence forRayong in the2024–25 Thai League 1, Aguinaldo returned to Malaysian football withBrunei DPMM who announced his capture for their own return to Malaysia in the2025–26 season on 7 June 2025.[8]
Aguinaldo was part of the Philippines U-22 Olympic squad that competed in the2019 Southeast Asian Games held inPhilippines.[9] He was one of two senior players of the squad along withStephan Schröck.[10]
In August 2013, he was named in the 21-man squad for the international friendly match againstIndonesia[11] on August 14, 2013. He earned his first senior international cap on the said match by replacingJames Younghusband in 63rd minute.[12]
He made his first appearance for the under-23 national team in the 1–0 friendly match loss againstSingapore on June 13, 2013.[13]
Aguinaldo was a member of the Philippines' squad at both the2014 AFC Challenge Cup and the2014 AFF Championship, reaching the finals and semi-finals respectively in each competition.[14] During the latter tournament Aguinaldo was involved in a fair bit of controversy in the first leg of the semi-final as Thai strikerAdisak Kraisorn was sent off for an off the ball altercation with the Filipino defender.[15] It appeared that Aguinaldo might have provoked the confrontation and afterwards he and other Filipino footballers received threats from Thai fans.[16]
Aguinaldo is an only child of Ariel and Maida Aguinaldo who both had roots to Davao. His name Amani is derived from an African title meaning both "warrior" and "peace". He was born inLas Piñas, but due to his parents' professions his family moved toCebu and thenDavao City where Aguinaldo spent most of his childhood, before moving back to theManila area where he attended high school. Aguinaldo took up football from his father at the age of five, and nine years later he was called up to the Philippines U-14 by futureLoyola coachKim Chul-soo. At the age of 16 Aguinaldo was selected to play for the u-21 side at the2012 Hassanal Bolkiah Trophy. During the tournament Aguinaldo was roomed with twinsMarwin and Marvin and became good friends with both. His favorite teams areManchester City,Bayern Munich,AC Milan, andReal Madrid, although his favorite footballer isLionel Messi.[3][17]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 4 December 2019 | Biñan Football Stadium,Biñan, Philippines |  Timor-Leste | 2–0 | 6–1 | 2019 Southeast Asian Games |
| 2. | 5–0 | |||||
| 3. | 6–0 |
ASEAN All-Stars
Individual
 | ||