Now in his second stint as the Netherlands’ boss, Ronald Koeman has already shown promising signs at Euro 2024. | Photo Credit: AP

Ronald Koeman has already proven that he has the mettle to make a successful outfit, after helping the Dutch qualify for Euro 2020, their first major tournament appearance since the 2014 World Cup.

Now in his second stint as the Netherlands’ boss, the 63-year-old has already shown promising signs at Euro 2024 and looks to bring back an organised attacking identity to the side that has long been accused of abandoning its hallowed Total Football style.

Ronald Koeman’s record as manager:

• Total matches: 795
• Wins: 429
• Draws: 168
• Losses: 198
• Win percentage: 53.96

Ronald Koeman’s record as Netherlands manager:

• Total matches: 61
• Wins: 34
• Draws: 14
• Losses: 13
• Win percentage: 55.74

What did Ronald Koeman say before Netherlands vs Japan?

“We put a lot of pressure on ourselves,” Koeman told reporters on Saturday. “We want to ‌go far in the tournament. We have a strong ‌team ⁠and we know what we need to improve to ⁠have a real chance.

“But we need to take it one game at a time. We need to focus first on Japan, which will be a ​difficult game.”

Koeman admitted that ​the Netherlands will have to be at their best against a spirited Japan side.

“We have a good ⁠impression of the Japanese team, we carefully analyse all our opponents,” ⁠he said. “Their game is offensive. I don’t want to discuss individual players, but we know they are physically ‌strong.

“We also know where our opportunities will lie. We are not afraid of our opponent, but we respect them.”

Published on Jun 14, 2026