La Liga giants Barcelona didn’t waste much time finding a new manager after sacking Quique Setien on Monday. According to multiple reports, Barca agreed to a two-year contract with Netherlands’ boss Ronald Koeman to take over the club’s hot seat.
The official announcement should follow soon as Barca needs to come to terms with Royal Dutch Football Association about compensation for Koeman’s early exit.
Barca decided to make a change at the helm after the club suffered an embarrassing 8-2 defeat against Bayern Munich in Champions League quarter-finals. Reportedly, several candidates were considered, including Mauricio Pochettino, but former Tottenham Hotspur’ manager was ruled out due to his affiliation with rivals Espanyol.
Ronald Koeman emerged as the next preferred candidate, and the club’s front office managed to convince him to take the job after he rejected them back in January. Koeman will now face a tough task of rebuilding the confidence of a team after a disappointing campaign in 2019/20, their first since 2007/08, without a trophy.
Koeman was a member of Barca’s golden generation during the ‘90s, which won four consecutive La Ligas and one European Cup under Johan Cruyff. He made 192 appearances with the Catalan club between 1989 and 1995.
As a manager, Koeman worked in Netherlands, Spain, England, and Portugal. He coached Ajax, PSV, Benfica, Valencia, and Everton, among others.
