Herrera comes in for Alfredo Tena, sacked last week along with sporting vice-president Luis Alves after America finished one from bottom of the standings, failing to make the eight-team knockout phase of the Apertura championship.
"It's the greatest club in Mexico. My challenge is the recovery of the team as a unit. We need results at once because this team must recover the place they've had in history," Herrera, 43, told a news conference.
Herrera, a former defender, has been most closely associated with Atlante, having had four spells with them as a player including retiring there and two as coach, from 2002 to 2004 and from last year until this appointment at America.
"I have it in my head to start off with a title... we'll sit down to look at those transfer-listed players to see which players can help us," he added.
"I'm not saying they're all staying or all going. I hope we keep the majority of the squad and strengthen it."
America put their entire squad, including half-a-dozen South American internationals, on the transfer list after their 3-1 defeat at Cruz Azul 11 days ago, with plans to revamp the team by promoting youngsters from their junior ranks.
Mexico's richest club have traditionally relied on expensive imports for their success in contrast to the policy of maintaining an all-Mexican squad that has helped arch-rivals Guadalajara finish top of the 2011 Apertura standings and made them favourites for the title.
America, founded 95 years ago, had their best years in the 1980s when they won five of their 10 league titles, but only two in the last nine years - Clausura in 2002 and 2005 - is a meagre return for the millions of dollars pumped into the club by Mexican media giant Televisa.
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