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Ronald Koeman will take over the Netherlands national team from 2023. This was reported by the federation of his country, which will hold Louis van Gaal in office until the Qatar 2022 World Cup dispute and then change its strategist. The news broke hours after it publicly transpired that the current coach is suffering from aggressive prostate cancer.
The Dutch federation reported that “after the next World Cup, Ronald Koeman will replace Louis van Gaal as national coach. His contract for this with the KNVB will run until the World Cup in 2026 and has now been signed by both parties.”
The former footballer who played 78 international matches with Clockwork Orange and was part of the win of the Euro Cup in 88, said: “I am looking forward to the new collaboration. A little over a year and a half ago, I certainly didn't leave the Dutch national team out of discontent. My stay felt good, the results were good and the click with the internationals was good. Soon we will continue on that path. That's safe for me.”
The reference was for the period in which Koeman commanded the ranks of the orange national team between February 2018 and mid-2020 (he was appointed after not qualifying for the 2018 World Cup in Russia). With the DT diver, he led Vitesse, Ajax, Benfica, PSV Eindhoven, Valencia, AZ Alkmaar, Feyenoord, Southampton, Eveton and Barcelona, as well as the Dutch national team with which he won second place in the Nations League and the passage to Euro 2020.
“We are very happy that Ronald will return next year. During his previous tenure as national coach, there was great satisfaction with his work and results. That's why, after internal deliberations, I entered into conversations with Ronald and his agent Rob Jansen, along with senior football director Nico-Jan Hoogma,” said Marianne van Leeuwen, KNVB's professional football director.
Meanwhile, he announced why his hiring was confirmed before van Gaal's departure: “I didn't want to wait to complete the succession. After all, the changing of the guard will come at an atypical time; end of the calendar year, a period when the best coaches have been under contract for a long time, and therefore clarification is scarce. Therefore, in mid-January we decided to contact Ronald, who was available. Then we reached an agreement in some conversations.”
Chance determined that the Netherlands will be the country that will start the next World Cup: it will join Group A with hosts Qatar, Ecuador and Senegal. The first round will be on Monday, November 21 at Al Thumama Stadium in front of the Africans. Then it will be measured on Friday 25/11 against the South Americans at the International Khalifa Stadium. And he will finally act against the organizers on Tuesday 29/11 at Al Bayt Stadium.
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