There was no real suspense. On Tuesday, Catalan president Josep Maria Bartomeu confided that Ronald Koeman would succeed Quique Setien, sacked on Monday, on the Barça bench "if nothing gets complicated". So there was no complication. The Catalan club confirmed the information on Wednesday in a press release. It will be presented to the press this afternoon.
"FC Barcelona and Ronald Koeman have reached an agreement for his arrival as coach of the FC Barcelona first team until June 30, 2022," the club said via the press release. The Dutchman already has a great deal of experience as a coach, with more than twenty years on the bench and eight titles won. He arrived at FC Barcelona after having gone through the Premier League, the Spanish Liga, the Dutch Eredivisie or the Portuguese league, in addition to the selection of the Netherlands. "
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🚀 The hero of Wembley 92 returns! 🏆 ¡Vuelve el Héroe de Wembley '92! 😍 Torna the Wembley Heroi! 💙❤️ #KoemanCuler
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The Koeman site promises to be immense. He recovers a club traumatized by a disappointing season, punctuated by a correction (2-8) received against Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Friday. A historic rout for the club which, in fact, precipitated the dismissal of Setien and the departure of Frenchman Eric Abidal on Tuesday, who had occupied the post of technical secretary at Barça since 2018 and whose sporting choices were only rarely conclusive .
It's a homecoming for the tall blonde with the titanic strike. Between 1989 and 1995, Koeman wore the blaugrana colors and largely filled his trophy cabinet. In the space of six seasons, he won La Liga four times (1991, 1992, 1993 and 1994) and once the Champions League (1992).
It was he who gave the club its first European coronation with a powerful free kick from nearly 30m in the final against Sampdoria. “Everyone knows Barcelona are my dream club. It's very special for me to be able to become a coach there, ”said the technician in a statement.
He has coached in the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and England!
After his playing career, he embraced that of coach, scouring the fields in the four corners of Europe: Ajax, Benfica, PSV Eindhoven, Valencia, Southampton, Everton ...
The choice to return to the Blaugrana forces Koeman, 57, to leave the selection of the Netherlands, which he led since February 2018. He was to take him to the World Cup in Qatar in 2022. The former defender will give way to his deputy Dwight Lodeweges, who will become the head coach while the Dutch federation appoints another coach.
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“It has been an honor to be the national coach of the Netherlands. For two and a half years, I have done everything to succeed with the Oranje. When I look back, I am proud of what we have accomplished together during this time. The Dutch national team has a bright future, I am convinced of that, ”thanked Koeman in the press release issued by the Dutch federation.
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