Erwin Koeman and Patrick Lodewijks will join the staff of future national coach Ronald Koeman. The brother of the ex-Barcelona coach will work as an assistant coach, while the former goalkeeper will train the the Dutch goalkeepers. For Lodewijks, this means a return to the Dutch national team, having previously been a goalkeeper coach from 2014 to 2015 and from 2018 to 2021. Erwin Koeman will again become assistant to Ronald Koeman, having previously filled that position at Southampton and Everton.
Ronald Koeman is pleased with his brother’s appointment. “We will soon start with a new staff, where quality and experience count heavily for me,” begins the coach who will start working for the the Dutch squad after the World Cup in Qatar. “I’ve worked a lot with Erwin before, so then you know what’s in it for you. The three and a half years with Erwin in England have taught me that he has a good view of things and that we also work in a complementary way.” Erwin Koeman previously worked in the Premier League at Southampton and Everton with Ronald Koeman. He also stood on his own two feet at, among others, RKC Waalwijk, Feyenoord, FC Utrecht, FC Eindhoven and Hungary.
Lodewijks is also a familiar face for Koeman. “I have also worked with Patrick before. He is a professional when it comes to goalkeeping matters. That was already clear to me during our periods at Feyenoord, Everton and earlier the Dutch national team.” During his playing career, Lodewijks played for PSV, FC Groningen and Feyenoord, after which he started working as a goalkeeper coach for the Rotterdam team.The 55-year-old Lodewijks also coached Jong Feyenoord and entered into an employment contract with the Dutch national team. Lodewijks embarked on a new adventure at Everton, where Ronald Koeman also started at that time.From 2018 to 2021, Lodewijks was already active in the technical staff of the Dutch national team, where he is now returning.
The KNVB already announced the return of Ronald Koeman at the beginning of April. For example, the currently unemployed trainer returns to his old employer. Between 2018 and 2020, Koeman was already under contract with the Dutch national team, where he performed well in, among other things, the Nations League. Yet the born Zaandammer left, as he could not resist the lure of his old love Barcelona. A little over a year and a half later, Koeman left the Catalans again due to disappointing results and a bad relationship with chairman Joan Laporta. When it became known that Louis van Gaal would leave after the World Cup, Koeman quickly came back into the picture to start a new employment with the the Dutch.