The Netherlands have been a bit of a train wreck in the last couple of years, they reached the World Cup final in 2010 and were beaten in the semi-final of the competition in 2014 but fast forward a year and a half and they failed to qualify for the 24 team Euro 2016.
In that qualifying campaign, they finished 4th in their group, behind Turkey, Iceland and the Czech Republic, teams that wouldn’t exactly be considered international powerhouses.
Their manager, Danny Blind, was sacked last Sunday after a 2-0 defeat to Bulgaria, which left them in fourth place in their qualifying group.
And loyal servant Arjen Robben has said that both he and Wesley Sneijder want to be involved in the recruitment of the national side’s new coach.
Speaking after the side’s 2-1 loss against Italy in last night’s friendly, Robben said:
“We have been in the team for the last 14 years and have told the KNVB (The Dutch FA) that we want to be part of the process…”
Robben is the national side’s captain and believes that it is his role to be the messenger between the Dutch football association and the squad.
“I am the first point of contact between the association and the players. I have no plans to stop. That’s why Wesley and I want to be involved in the process,” he told Dutch TV.
Bookmakers have installed Louis van Gaal as the favourite to reunite with the national side after leaving the post for Manchester United in 2014, with Guus Hiddink and Ruud Gullit amongst the names mentioned to take over.
Netherlands will play Morocco at the end of May in their next match where a new manager will probably be at the helm.
