Xavi Hernandez has finally gotten a new coaching job, aftet he left his role at Barcelona. He is now the new coach of the Netherlands national team, as they aim for glory Euro 2028, and the FIFA World Cup 2030. In fact, the Spanish legend has broken a 48-year-old streak.

Xavi became the first foreigner in 48 years to become the head coach of the Netherlands national side. The last foreign-born coach of the Netherlands was Ernst Happel from 1977-78.

Xavi was a member of the Spain team that beat the Dutch in the World Cup final in 2010, marking their third defeat in the title match.

The 46-year-old Xavi, who has been out of work since leaving his job as Barcelona coach in May 2024, takes over from Ronald Koeman after his departure following the World Cup.

The former midfielder said he felt a “special connection to Dutch football” after coming through a Barcelona academy influenced by Johan Cruyff and Rinus Michels.

“You could say that I am a bit of a son of Dutch football,” said Xavi, who has signed a deal through to the 2030 World Cup. “Other great coaches, especially Louis van Gaal, under whom I made my debut at Barcelona, and Frank Rijkaard, also played an important role in shaping me as a player and coach.”

Xavi said the Dutch soccer culture — “attacking football, based on possession, with creativity, passion, and conviction” — appealed to him.

“Of course, the most important goal is and always will be to win, but I prefer to do so in a way that reflects those characteristics and that people can enjoy,” he said. “The potential for this is there, as well as a solid foundation to build upon.”

Nigel de Jong, director of elite football at the Dutch federation and an opponent of Xavi in the 2010 World Cup final, said Xavi’s vision of “dominant and attractive football, combined with the flexibility that modern elite football demands” would serve the team well.

“Xavi believes in those basic principles, has embraced that vision, and made it his own,” De Jong said. “All of that, combined with his personality and the way he knows how to connect with players and get the best out of a group, makes him the right choice for the coming years.”

After playing for 17 years at Barcelona, Xavi finished his career at Al Sadd before becoming the Qatari team’s coach from 2019-21. At Barcelona, he was the coach from 2021-24, where he won the La Liga title in 2022-23.

(Inputs From AP)