AMSTERDAM – Frank de Boer says he is looking forward to working with an exciting generation of Dutch players and confident that the Netherlands are on the brink of a successful run in world football.
De Boer was appointed as Netherlands coach on Wednesday and presented to the media on Friday as the replacement for Ronald Koeman, who has taken over at Barcelona.
"I'm here to win and to ensure we get results. We have the quality players to do it. I was proud as a player to put on the national team shirt and it is a really special moment for me to be here as national coach," said the 50-year-old, who won 112 caps as a player and was assistant coach when the Dutch reached the 2010 World Cup final.
The Netherlands missed out on the last World Cup in Russia and also the 2016 European Championship in France but qualified for Euro 2020, postponed to next year. De Boer’s contract is through to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
"I see a very productive period ahead of us and a chance to do something special. We need that after missing two big tournaments. There is so much young talent knocking on the door now," he added.
The Netherlands showed remarkable improvement under Koeman over the last two years, not only qualifying for Euro 2020 but also reaching the final of the inaugural Nations League last year.
"I'm not Koeman 2.0. I have my own approach and I'm not going to copy someone else but I'd like to stay on the same path as him. It's on my to-do list to talk to him," De Boer said.
De Boer starts with three matches next month – a friendly against Mexico in Amsterdam on October 7 and then Nations League matches in Bosnia on October 11 and Italy on October 14.
Reuters