Club icon John van den Brom will be the new head coach of Vitesse, the club confirms to NU.nl after reports from The Telegraph. The former player will sign for one year and will be presented on Wednesday, even though it is not yet clear whether the ailing Vitesse will continue to exist.
Interim director Edwin Reijntjes acknowledged last week that he was in discussions with Van den Brom, but that some wrinkles still needed to be ironed out. The 57-year-old coach from Amersfoort only wanted to return to Vitesse if the club can play for promotion in the Kitchen Champion Division next season.
Reijntjes could not give that guarantee, because the survival of Vitesse is seriously threatened. The club is struggling with a debt of 19 million euros and currently does not meet the licensing requirements of the KNVB. If Vitesse does not get things in order before June 15, the club will cease to exist.
Vitesse has drawn up a budget for next season, in which, after a major reorganization, 4 million euros has been reserved for the first team. This would put the club ‘only’ in the sub-top of the Kitchen Champion Division.
It is enough for Van den Brom to return to the club, for which he played no fewer than 324 matches (1986-1993 and 1996-2000) and where he was a trainer for one season (2011/2012). After his dismissal from Polish side Lech Poznan in December, the former coach of AZ, FC Utrecht and ADO Den Haag was without a club.
Van den Brom succeeds his former teammate Edward Sturing in Arnhem. Sturing had previously indicated that he wanted to quit after the toughest season in the club’s 132-year history. He may remain active at Vitesse in a different role.
Tags: Ailing Vitesse strictly club icon John van den Brom coach Football
