djon
07-23-2005, 10:14 PM
Hiddink the right man for Socceroos
By Michael Lynch
July 24, 2005
Page Tools
Email to a friend Printer format
Comment
When Football Federation Australia bosses Frank Lowy and John O'Neill introduced new Socceroos coach Guus Hiddink on Friday, they brought to a successful culmination a pursuit that had begun, behind the scenes, more than 12 months ago.
Although Lowy and O'Neill had consistently defended Frank Farina's position, they made no secret since they took control of the sport in late 2003 that they wanted a high-profile, internationally respected professional to take on the role of technical director.
Most attention was focused on former Liverpool and France boss Gerard Houllier. Other names included Serbian supercoach Bora Milutinovic and former Japan coach Phillipe Troussier.
One man whose name was not mentioned was Hiddink.
O'Neill revealed last week that initial talks with Hiddink about whether he was interested in the job had taken place last year.
Although nothing came of it — Hiddink recently returned to the Netherlands to take over top club PSV Eindhoven after guiding South Korea to the 2002 World Cup semi-finals — O'Neill said that lines of communication had been kept open.
"We were able to use that connection to spark his interest when the coaching job became available," O'Neill said.
There is no doubt that the 58-year-old Dutchman is the best credentialled coach to take control of the national team.
Although there has been muted criticism about the fact that he will take the position on a part-time basis and remain head coach at PSV, rational examination of the situation would suggest he is right to do so.
Ninety per cent of the players he will consider for the crunch games are based on his doorstep, in western Europe, and he will have the chance to see them play regularly and meet them easily.
Hiddink's initial contract is to cover only the World Cup qualification period, which ends in mid-November after the two matches against the fifth-placed South American nation.
Should Australia qualify (and the speculation is that Hiddink could earn a €1 million bonus if he guides the Socceroos to their first World Cup in 32 years), a second-stage contract has been prepared to take him through to the middle of July next year, when the final will be played in Berlin.
If Australia acquits itself well, Hiddink would have a major decision to make — whether to take the post full time, sever ties with PSV and base himself in Australia 50 per cent of the time to mastermind an overhaul of the nation's coaching and development structures planned by Lowy and O'Neill.
The fact that from next January Australia moves into the Asian Football Confederation for World Cup qualification would make the Australian job more attractive.
For the first time, the national team (and the under-23 and age-group teams) will have a full and regular program of competitive matches to occupy their time, rather than the two crunch matches every four years that was their lot while in Oceania.
An extra sweetener is that the Socceroos will now also play a series of tough games to qualify for the 2007 Asian Nations Cup, where the finals will be held concurrently in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.
So if he were to throw his lot in with Australia, Hiddink would at least be sure of a full timetable and a stimulating workload.
For Hiddink, taking the job is a bet to nothing. With only two training camps and three matches (two against the Solomon Islands and one against Jamaica) to prepare the team before the South American games, he can hardly be criticised if they fail. If they succeed, he will assume as heroic a status here as he did in South Korea.
FFA bosses felt that the atmosphere around the national team under Farina was too comfortable, that too many players were blase about their place in the team.
Hiddink's record suggests he will be a change agent, and on Friday he signalled that he would bring several young players into his first training camp in Holland to shake things up. He is known as a strong character and a strict disciplinarian, and when coaching the Dutch he sent Edgar Davids home from the Euro championships in 1996.
He also rang the changes in South Korea, dropping several senior men in what was ultimately a hugely successful effort to change the team's culture, self-confidence and work rate.
Hiddink achieved success with South Korea playing an energetic, counter-attacking game, while PSV was also strong on the break.
Farina's assistant Graham Arnold, a Dutch speaker after playing for several seasons in Holland in the 1990s, remains as assistant and will be Hiddink's eyes and ears in this country.
He will monitor several A-League players (Archie Thompson, Simon Colosimo, Kevin Muscat, Jade North, Ante Milicic and David Zdrilic, among others) who would come into consideration for a berth in the national squad.
Arnold will also spend time between now and November at PSV working with Hiddink and absorbing his coaching and tactical philosophies.
It's hard to think of a better man Lowy and O'Neill could have gone for, even if, as he made clear on Friday, he is no miracle worker.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/soccer/hiddink-the-right-man-for-socceroos/2005/07/24/1121539193045.html?oneclick=true
By Michael Lynch
July 24, 2005
Page Tools
Email to a friend Printer format
Comment
When Football Federation Australia bosses Frank Lowy and John O'Neill introduced new Socceroos coach Guus Hiddink on Friday, they brought to a successful culmination a pursuit that had begun, behind the scenes, more than 12 months ago.
Although Lowy and O'Neill had consistently defended Frank Farina's position, they made no secret since they took control of the sport in late 2003 that they wanted a high-profile, internationally respected professional to take on the role of technical director.
Most attention was focused on former Liverpool and France boss Gerard Houllier. Other names included Serbian supercoach Bora Milutinovic and former Japan coach Phillipe Troussier.
One man whose name was not mentioned was Hiddink.
O'Neill revealed last week that initial talks with Hiddink about whether he was interested in the job had taken place last year.
Although nothing came of it — Hiddink recently returned to the Netherlands to take over top club PSV Eindhoven after guiding South Korea to the 2002 World Cup semi-finals — O'Neill said that lines of communication had been kept open.
"We were able to use that connection to spark his interest when the coaching job became available," O'Neill said.
There is no doubt that the 58-year-old Dutchman is the best credentialled coach to take control of the national team.
Although there has been muted criticism about the fact that he will take the position on a part-time basis and remain head coach at PSV, rational examination of the situation would suggest he is right to do so.
Ninety per cent of the players he will consider for the crunch games are based on his doorstep, in western Europe, and he will have the chance to see them play regularly and meet them easily.
Hiddink's initial contract is to cover only the World Cup qualification period, which ends in mid-November after the two matches against the fifth-placed South American nation.
Should Australia qualify (and the speculation is that Hiddink could earn a €1 million bonus if he guides the Socceroos to their first World Cup in 32 years), a second-stage contract has been prepared to take him through to the middle of July next year, when the final will be played in Berlin.
If Australia acquits itself well, Hiddink would have a major decision to make — whether to take the post full time, sever ties with PSV and base himself in Australia 50 per cent of the time to mastermind an overhaul of the nation's coaching and development structures planned by Lowy and O'Neill.
The fact that from next January Australia moves into the Asian Football Confederation for World Cup qualification would make the Australian job more attractive.
For the first time, the national team (and the under-23 and age-group teams) will have a full and regular program of competitive matches to occupy their time, rather than the two crunch matches every four years that was their lot while in Oceania.
An extra sweetener is that the Socceroos will now also play a series of tough games to qualify for the 2007 Asian Nations Cup, where the finals will be held concurrently in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.
So if he were to throw his lot in with Australia, Hiddink would at least be sure of a full timetable and a stimulating workload.
For Hiddink, taking the job is a bet to nothing. With only two training camps and three matches (two against the Solomon Islands and one against Jamaica) to prepare the team before the South American games, he can hardly be criticised if they fail. If they succeed, he will assume as heroic a status here as he did in South Korea.
FFA bosses felt that the atmosphere around the national team under Farina was too comfortable, that too many players were blase about their place in the team.
Hiddink's record suggests he will be a change agent, and on Friday he signalled that he would bring several young players into his first training camp in Holland to shake things up. He is known as a strong character and a strict disciplinarian, and when coaching the Dutch he sent Edgar Davids home from the Euro championships in 1996.
He also rang the changes in South Korea, dropping several senior men in what was ultimately a hugely successful effort to change the team's culture, self-confidence and work rate.
Hiddink achieved success with South Korea playing an energetic, counter-attacking game, while PSV was also strong on the break.
Farina's assistant Graham Arnold, a Dutch speaker after playing for several seasons in Holland in the 1990s, remains as assistant and will be Hiddink's eyes and ears in this country.
He will monitor several A-League players (Archie Thompson, Simon Colosimo, Kevin Muscat, Jade North, Ante Milicic and David Zdrilic, among others) who would come into consideration for a berth in the national squad.
Arnold will also spend time between now and November at PSV working with Hiddink and absorbing his coaching and tactical philosophies.
It's hard to think of a better man Lowy and O'Neill could have gone for, even if, as he made clear on Friday, he is no miracle worker.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/soccer/hiddink-the-right-man-for-socceroos/2005/07/24/1121539193045.html?oneclick=true