THE HAGUE, April 7 — Ronald Koeman returns as the Netherlands coach as of January 1, 2023, the Dutch football association KNVB announced on Wednesday.
The 59-year-old Koeman succeeds Louis van Gaal with a contract until the 2026 World Cup.
Despite being diagnosed with prostate cancer, Van Gaal, who announced the news of his illness last Sunday night, intends to finish his contract and coach ‘Oranje’ at the 2022 World Cup, which will be played in Qatar from November 21 to December 18.
From February 2018 to August 2020, Koeman was the head coach of the Netherlands. After that, he moved to FC Barcelona, where he was fired in October last year. Under the helm of Koeman the Dutch team made it to the final of the Nations League in 2019 and qualified for Euro 2020.
“I am looking forward to the new collaboration,” Koeman stated in a KNVB press release. “A little over a year and a half ago I certainly did not leave the Dutch national team out of dissatisfaction. It felt good, the results were good and the click with the internationals was good. We will soon continue on that path for sure.” (Xinhua)
