Louis van Gaal
Photo: REUTERS
Louis van Gaal is the new old coach of the Dutch national football team.
Corresponding rumors had been around for a long time, now the association KNVB van Gaal has officially announced its return.
The 69-year-old - van Gaal will celebrate his 70th birthday next week - will receive a contract until after the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The tournament starts in November.
It is the third time that van Gaal has been appointed bonds coach.
Most recently, he led the Elftal to the World Cup semi-finals in 2014, but lost to Argentina there.
The Netherlands won the game for third place 3-0 against Brazil.
"Dutch football has always been close to my heart, and in my opinion, coaching the national team is a key position in order to advance our football," van Gaal was quoted as saying in a press release.
He considered it an honor to coach the Dutch national team, it said.
Van Gaal will succeed Frank de Boer, who recently failed with the Netherlands at the European Championship in the round of 16 against the Czech Republic.
His first competitive game will take place in September when the World Cup qualifying matches are due.
Former national coach Danny Blind (2015 to 2017) and Henk Fraser will be his assistants.
The Dutchman is one of the defining football coaches of the past decades.
With Ajax Amsterdam he won the Champions League in 1995, after which he won two championships with FC Barcelona, among other things.
He worked for FC Bayern from 2009 to 2011, and his tactics, which focus on possession and position play, are still influential in the Bavarian game idea.
Van Gaal had actually declared his coaching career over in 2017.
He was previously a coach at Manchester United.
mon / Reuters
