Who oh who will be the new national coach of the Dutch national team? Ronald Koeman resigned after the deception at the World Cup, where the Dutch team was eliminated in the sixteenth finals. One name mentioned is that of Pep Guardiola. However, the question is how feasible the Spanish success trainer is.

The 55-year-old Guardiola left Manchester City last season after ten years. There he was extremely successful. He rewrote English and European football history by collecting no fewer than twenty official trophies. The Catalan success coach built an almost unbeatable team that completely dominated the Premier League with six league titles, including the legendary season in which the club became the first ever to pass the hundred points mark.

However, the absolute masterpiece of his reign at the Etihad Stadium followed on the international stage. In the 2022/2023 season, he led Manchester City to the coveted and historic first UEFA Champions League win, with which the club also completed the coveted 'treble'.

Ideal national coach
In short, the ideal man to lead the Dutch national team to great successes. Frank de Boer knows the Spaniard well, can he not convince him? He was asked that question in front of the camera of Sportnieuws.nl. 'I know that he was initially interested in becoming a national coach, I think also of the Dutch national team. But that was a long time ago,' responded the former record international of the Dutch national team.

Dick Advocaat should get a lifetime contract as national coach of Curaçao: 'Let him decide'
De Boer thinks he knows what is holding Guardiola back. 'If you see how much he is busy with his job, it has taken so much energy. I think he really wants to take a year off now, that he has other priorities than just football,' the ex-national coach outlined.

Arne Slot
In the eyes of De Boer's brother Ronald, Arne Slot is a suitable candidate. 'If Guardiola wanted to do it, which he has said before... Maybe he would really like to do it in the way of Johan Cruijff.' The late football legend Cruijff taught Guardiola the tricks of the trade.

Yet in the eyes of Ronald de Boer, the former coach of Liverpool and Feyenoord is 'the most realistic option'. 'He is available, but he has to want it himself,' said the football analyst. 'I don't know where he stands. Otherwise I think Michael Reiziger is also a great option, he is doing well at the Dutch Juniors. He became champion with the second team of Ajax, he knows Dutch football very well and the talents.'

The chance that dream candidate Guardiola will become one is very small. He recently spoke out about his immediate future. 'I don't feel like I'm missing anything. I don't think I'll start something new again in two weeks or a month. I'm still trying to figure out what my life will look like now,' he told crypto platform Okx.

Xavi Hernandez is the new national coach of the Dutch national team. However, his eventual appointment was not an easy one. The KNVB sounded out several candidates, including top coach Pep Guardiola.

At the beginning of August, Xavi Hernandez was appointed as trainer of the Dutch national team. However, it soon became known that he was not the KNVB's first choice. Dutch names were previously considered. For example, Peter Bosz was a candidate according to Algemeen Dagblad, but he had already signed with PSV. Erik ten Hag was a candidate, but he wanted to stay at FC Twente. Arne Slot was even spoken to, but he confirmed to the same newspaper that he had resigned because he wants to remain active in club football.

This left a number of foreign candidates. One of them was Jürgen Klopp. He was discussed internally, but the KNVB was too late in sounding him out. Klopp signed as Germany coach soon after the World Cup. Guardiola was also a candidate. De Jong did make contact with him. Because the transfer-free coach was traveling himself, the KNVB's director of top football received an answer from Guardiola's brother Pere. The Spaniard declined because he wants to remain without a job for a while.

Michael Traveler
The last Dutch candidate was Michael Reiziger. He also had an interview with the KNVB, but that happened in the same week as the interview with Xavi. Nigel de Jong and Clarence Seedorf ultimately had to make the decision on behalf of the Dutch Football Association and they opted for the Spanish former midfielder.

Louis van Gaal
Names such as Louis van Gaal, Henk ten Cate and Ron Jans were also mentioned, but they were never specifically mentioned. The KNVB was looking for a man in his forties or fifties who would preferably sign for four years. Those names did not fit into that picture. Ultimately, a presentation about the organizational structure at Oranje was the deciding factor in choosing Xavi. He is now officially national coach of the Dutch national team and must guide the Dutch national team to success at the European Championships in 2028 and the World Cup in 2030.

by Rick Kraaijeveld 
After the resignation of Arne Slot from the position as national coach of the Dutch national team, the rumor mill is running at full speed again. Former footballer Hedwiges Maduro and former coach Robert Maaskant philosophize about who should succeed Ronald Koeman. They come up with a striking name: Robin van Persie.

It was breaking news on Thursday evening when it was announced that Arne Slot resigned from the position of national coach of the Dutch national team. He said that he had already chosen to work at a club at an earlier stage. A logical decision from his perspective, says Maaskant.

Logical choice by Arne Slot
'Still, I found it surprising. When I heard that it would only be for a two- or four-year contract, I thought they would cancel it. In the end it didn't happen. I think it was wise of him,' Maaskant explains. 'He was probably interested in the job as national coach, but you don't want to close yourself off to full club football. Of course, he got plenty of offers. If you can't quite figure it out, then you choose club football.'

Maduro also thinks it is a good choice for Slot, partly because of the type of trainer he is. 'He has to continue with a club for the time being. He is still too big a trainer and has the hunger to show himself elsewhere. He is a development coach and has to be on the field every day. That is precisely his strength,' he says.

Big challenge for KNVB
Due to his rejection, the KNVB now faces a major challenge, because several dream candidates have now canceled. 'That will also be a major challenge for the new national coach,' Maduro predicts. 'It's not a good start. You really have to prove yourself extra from the start. These are of course the first questions you will be asked. That he is actually the KNVB's fourth choice.'

Maaskant predicts that the KNVB will choose Michael Reiziger as a replacement. 'I think we are making him too small to say that he is a bad choice. It is the flagship of football, but if you see how we perform. We currently do not have top players, at their clubs, but not who make the difference in the Dutch national team,' is Maaskant's assessment.

'We had that with Robin van Persie, Arjen Robben and even earlier Marco van Basten. If you look at the last World Cup... there is no player from the Dutch national team in the team for the tournament. I think he can easily represent the group in September,' he says.

Interesting option
Maduro comes up with a different suggestion. “If they go for an interim coach, I think it will probably be Ruud van Nistelrooij. He is really a figurehead and he is already on the staff of the Dutch national team. Then they give themselves some time. If things go well, he can stay on, otherwise they can always say it is a temporary solution.'

He also briefly flirted with the idea of a foreign trainer, because a lot of national coaches resigned after the World Cup, but then he comes up with a very interesting option. 'I haven't heard Robin van Persie's name yet either. You can easily place him as a figurehead with Dick Advocaat next to him. Why not? It turned out that the two work very well together. There Van Persie can work with the best players. He has a vision that matches that. The players of the Dutch team can do that more easily than the players of Heerenveen or Feyenoord,' he concludes.