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Dutch veteran Dick Advocaat returns to take Curacao to the World Cup and set a record as the oldest coach in the tournament’s 96-year history.
The return of Advocaat, 78, three months after he resigned due to family health problems, was confirmed by the Curacao football federation on Tuesday, a day after the departure of Fred Rutten.
“Discussions between (the federation) and Dick Advocaat regarding the details of this appointment are currently underway,” the statement said, with “the aim of ensuring stability, clarity and continuity around the national team.”
When Curacao makes its World Cup debut against Germany on June 14 in Houston, Advocaat will be seven years older than 71-year-old Otto Rehhagel, Greece’s coach at the 2010 World Cup.
This will also be Advocaat’s third World Cup with a third different team: his native Netherlands in 1994 and South Korea in 2006.
Curaçao also faces Ecuador in Kansas City and Ivory Coast in Philadelphia in the inaugural 48-team World Cup co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico. The expanded format yielded three additional guaranteed entries into the CONCACAF region.
Advocaat led the small Caribbean Islands team through qualifying, then was replaced in February by compatriot Rutten.
Rutten oversaw two defeats in warm-up matches in March, against Australia and China, and was reportedly unpopular with players who wanted Advocaat back.
Curaçao is an autonomous territory of approximately 156,000 inhabitants located in the Caribbean, within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The team relies almost entirely on players born and raised in the Netherlands.
