Barcelona: The 5 dream managers for next season
Ronald Koeman: Johan Cruyff’s more pragmatic protégé
Ronald Koeman was part of Johan Cruyff’s ‘Dream Team’ at Barcelona. He played alongside Barça’s most successful manager under Barça’s most iconic manager. It is only right for Koeman to become Barça head coach at one point in his long managerial career.
Koeman is a Barça legend, to say the very least. He netted the goal which saw Barça lift its first-ever European Cup. Moreover, he was the set-piece expert for Cruyff’s team and won 7 major trophies with the club.
He even returned 3 years later, as assistant to fellow Dutchman Louis van Gaal. As part of the coaching setup alongside the likes of José Mourinho, he built up a good reputation for himself. Eventually, Koeman moved on to coach in the Netherlands.
Apart from short spells in Portugal and Spain, Koeman spent a decade coaching in the Netherlands. He won 3 Eredivisie titles, and one KNVB Cup, with the greatest success coming at Ajax. Then, he moved to England.
Replacing Mauricio Pochettino at Southampton, Koeman did wonders. He built on the momentum created by Pochettino, recruiting good players and building a squad. He led Southampton to consistently good league finishes, with some entertaining football along the way.
His subsequent spell in charge of Everton was a failure, but Koeman has picked himself up as Netherlands head coach. He has overseen a rejuvenation of the Oranje, developing great young players in Matthijs de Ligt, Steven Bergwijn and Frenkie de Jong.
Ronald Koeman’s success as a manager has come when he has employed tactics different to his own footballing background. But as Netherlands manager, he has gone back to his roots and employed a possession-based tactical setup.
As a result, a previously dormant and ageing Holland side have been able to beat the likes of France and Germany multiple times. They even finished runners-up in the recently-concluded UEFA Nations League.
Koeman has adopted a pragmatic approach throughout his managerial career, perhaps due to the influence of Van Gaal. In that way, he is similar to Mourinho. He takes it one-game-at-a-time, and it has paid dividends under pressure situations.
The ex-Culé is a highly experienced, and very talented manager. He hasn’t had the opportunity to really make it big in European football, but has done more than prove his mettle with smaller clubs who have limited resources.
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Barça could the club which propels Koeman to stardom as a manager, after it did as a player.