Xavi Hernández, the Barcelona and Spain great who led the Catalan club to the La Liga title in 2023, has been appointed head coach of the Netherlands national team. The KNVB confirmed the move on Wednesday, ending nearly two years out of the dugout for the 46-year-old and handing him one of the most storied jobs in international football.
According to ONE, the Dutch federation had narrowed its search to two main contenders, Xavi and former Belgium and Portugal boss Roberto Martínez, before settling on the Spaniard, who has signed a contract running through the 2030 World Cup.
He replaces Ronald Koeman, who left the post after the Netherlands' early exit from this summer's World Cup. Dutch broadcaster NOS reported that the KNVB's hunt for a successor dragged on for weeks, with Erik ten Hag, Peter Bosz and Arne Slot all declining the job before the federation turned to Xavi.
The appointment makes Xavi only the second foreign-born head coach in the history of the Dutch national team, and the first since Austria's Ernst Happel guided Oranje to the 1978 World Cup final.
"I think it is an enormous honour to become head coach of the Netherlands national team," Xavi said, according to NOS. He spoke of a deep personal connection to Dutch football through Barcelona's La Masia academy, built on the coaching principles of Johan Cruyff and Rinus Michels, describing himself in footballing terms as "a son of Dutch football" and crediting Louis van Gaal and Frank Rijkaard among the figures who shaped him at the club.
ONE also reports that Xavi intends to bring Patrick Cloet onto his new coaching staff as he assembles his backroom team for the role.
There is a curious symmetry to the appointment. Xavi replaced Koeman as Barcelona coach back in November 2021, and now inherits his job for a second time, this time on the international stage. He also has personal history against Oranje: he started in central midfield for Spain in the 2010 World Cup final in Johannesburg, when Andrés Iniesta's late extra-time strike beat the Netherlands 1-0.
As a player, Xavi won four Champions League titles with Barcelona and lifted the World Cup and two European Championships with Spain. In the dugout, he managed Al Sadd in Qatar before returning to Barcelona in November 2021, guiding the club to the league title in his second full season, and departed at the end of the 2023-24 campaign.
He now takes charge of a Dutch squad moving on from the Koeman era, with the KNVB banking on his pedigree, and the possession-based, positional football he inherited from Cruyff's disciples, to reset Oranje's fortunes heading toward the next World Cup cycle.
