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Ajax announce return of Van Basten
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Marco van Basten (Netherlands) (¿Getty Images)
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AFC Ajax have announced that Marco van Basten will return
to the Amsterdam club as coach on a four-year contract when he stands
down as Netherlands manager after UEFA EURO 2008T.
Coaching team
The 43-year-old's tenure will begin on 1 July after he agreed a deal until
2012, although both parties will evaluate the situation at the end of
the 2009/10 season. He will be joined at the ArenA by his assistants with
the national team, John van't Schip and Rob Witschge. As well as being
former Netherlands team-mates, Van Basten and Van't Schip also coached
Jong Ajax in 2003/04 before succeeding Dick Advocaat at the helm of the
Oranje after the 2004 UEFA European Championship.
Ajax ambition
Under Van Basten, the Dutch qualified for the 2006 FIFA World Cup and
for UEFA EURO 2008T, where they will meet Italy, France and Romania in
Group C. "Everyone at Ajax wants to become champions," said
Van Basten, who scored 128 goals for Ajax - including the winner in the
1986/87 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup final - before joining AC Milan in a ?2.5m
move. "My goals are no different from those expected of every coach
at Ajax. For me, it was important to know what I could expect before taking
this job. That's why we've already had several discussions about all kinds
of details."
'Ambitious coaches'
Van Basten will succeed Adrie Koster, who himself replaced Henk ten Cate
following his switch to Chelsea FC earlier this season. Ajax technical
director Martin van Geel said: "We're very pleased. These are three
ambitious coaches with an Ajax past, who all bring with them international
careers as players and the necessary experience as coaches. Furthermore,
it's good that we now have clarity regarding the coaching staff for the
years to come."
UEFA.com,
24 February 2008
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