RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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Xavi Hernández spoke with reporters as the Dutch national team head coach for the first time on Tuesday -Credit:STEFAN KOOPS/EYE4IMAGES/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Following a thoroughly disappointing Round of 32 exit in this summer’s FIFA World Cup , Spain and Barcelona legend Xavi Hernández was officially unveiled as the new head coach of the Netherlands on Tuesday.
A World Cup and UEFA Euros winner as a player (among numerous other titles), and a La Liga champion as Barça boss, the 46-year-old has taken charge of Oranje on a four-year deal.
For the first time since Xavi’s appointment was announced on August 12 , Royal Dutch Football Federation (KNVB) executive and former midfielder Nigel de Jong spoke with reporters about the process of finding Ronald Koeman’s successor as head coach.
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KNVB executive Nigel de Jong said they first approached Pep Guardiola and Arne Slot for the role -Credit:STEFAN KOOPS/EYE4IMAGES/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Never one to hold back from a tackle as a player, De Jong also didn’t hold back any details when laying out their extensive search for their new head coach, revealing that Xavi was, in fact, their third choice for the role.
“The first contact was Pep Guardiola. As everyone knows, he indicated that he was going to stop at Manchester City,” the former City star explained. “The past that he has with football, the Dutch football culture, it was easy for us to double-check whether he was interested in taking the job as a coach.
“It became quite clear in a week's time that he wanted to take a sabbatical. So for us it was immediately switching to number two.
“Arne Slot was that candidate. Arne was a good candidate for us because he was also available. At that time, he was no longer at Liverpool. His contract ended there. And for us, of course, a suitable candidate to have that conversation with him about whether he was interested at all.
“As he himself indicated in the press, he eventually had the feeling that he fit into a club. We had to respect that. We had good, in-depth conversations with him to see if it fits from the ambition we have, from the content, from where he is in his phase of his career at the moment.
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“But in the end, he chose to stay in club football, which we had to respect in the end. We immediately switched to Xavi, who is now next to me as a national coach.”
De Jong then detailed the weeks-long talks that went on between the KNVB and Xavi before he was ultimately selected, noting that Dutch Under-21s coach and former Barça midfielder Michael Reiziger was also in the running.
While some may take being labeled a team’s third choice as somewhat of a slap in the face, especially on day one, Xavi seemed completely unfazed. “No, for me [it's] an honor to be here. A big honor,” he said.
“Just that this is Netherlands. I remember when I was a kid watching the Netherlands and you could watch good football, and this is my way here. This is my target: to play good football in order to be proud. So yeah, I don't care about if I'm the third or I'm the 10th one. It's an honor to be here working for the Federation of Netherlands. That's it.”
During his press conference, Xavi came across as confident, enthusiastic, and excited at the prospect of taking charge of the Dutch national team - one with which he said he feels a deep connection.
Xavi was joined by his coaching staff at the presentation -Credit:EYE4images/NurPhoto via Getty Images
“I have many connections with this country. My feeling today is that I'm going to the university of football [where] I learned a lot during my career as a player and as a coach,” he said.
Xavi is a product of La Masia, going on to spend the majority of his playing days with Barca, which, as is well documented, was heavily influenced by Dutch icon Johan Cruijff during his tenures there as a player and coach. What’s more, Xavi was handed his senior debut by legendary Dutch coach Louis van Gaal, whilst he also spent five years under the tutelage of another Oranje icon in Frank Rijkaard.
“I personally believe a lot in the in this generation. We have, as you know, we have many talents, but the most important thing for me is to create a team, a group, and a big family in order to compete well.
“Footballistically, we want a very brave team to dominate the game, to take the initiative with the ball, and at the same time our goal is to show everybody a team with passion, with desire and ambition. So this is very important for me as a coach. We are here to compete, we are here to enjoy, and we are here to win. I insist we are here to win.”
Xavi’s first opportunity to begin to create his vision of what the Dutch national team should look like is a matter of weeks away, with his first challenge set to be a Nations League game against Jürgen Klopp’s Germany on September 24, before Serbia three days later. They’ll then face Greece on October 1 and Serbia again on October 4.
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