Former Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard is set to sign a contract
to lead Saudi Arabia, according to an official from the team on
Wednesday.
Rijkaard is expected to a sign a three-year deal worth ?11
million (15.9 million) in London on Thursday, said Saudi Arabia
official Mohamed al-Mesael.
The former Netherlands midfielder was fired as Barcelona coach
in 2008 after five years at the club, leading the team to two
Spanish championships and the Champions League title in 2006. His
last coaching assignment was with Turkish club Galatasaray.
Once among the top teams in Asia, Saudi Arabia has been without
a coach since crashing out of the Asian Cup in January. A deal was
signed with Ricardo Gomes but it was canceled after Saudi Arabia
rejected his demands for taking over.
Saudi Arabia has appeared in four World Cups, but its fortunes
have declined since reaching the 2006 tournament. The team missed
out on the 2010 event and has fallen to 92nd in the FIFA world
rankings after reaching a high of 23rd in 2004.
Saudi Arabia’s low point came earlier this year after being
knocked out of the Asian Cup, a tournament it has won three times,
in the group stage after an opening loss to Syria. The team’s
Portuguese coach was fired after the loss. His successor, Nassir
al-Johar, was sacked after the campaign ended with a 5-0 loss to
Japan.
After the tournament, King Abdullah removed Prince Sultan bin
Fahd bin Abdulaziz Al Saud as football federation president.
Source link : https://amp.foxsports.com/stories/soccer/frank-rijkaard-set-to-coach-saudi-arabia
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Publish date : 2011-06-29 03:00:00
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