FFA appoint Van Marwijk as Caltex Socceroos Head Coach for 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia

Sydney, Australia
Thursday, 25 January 2018

FIFA World Cup Final coach Bert Van Marwijk has been appointed Head Coach of the Caltex Socceroos for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.

Football Federation Australia (FFA) Chairman Steven Lowy said the Dutch coach’s experience was the perfect blend for the Caltex Socceroos’ Russian campaign.

“This is a great result for Australian football,” said Lowy. “Bert Van Marwijk is world class. He took the Netherlands to the World Cup Final in 2010, he led the Saudi Arabian team to qualify directly for this year’s Finals and most importantly, he knows a lot about our team and how they play because he studied them closely as an opposition manager in the same group. These experiences make him a compelling choice.”

Lowy paid tribute to Ange Postecoglou, the support staff and especially the players for achieving qualification.

“We now go to Russia with a battle-hardened group of players and support staff who made it to the Finals by the toughest road possible. In Bert Van Marwijk we have a manager who can achieve great things with this team. And we will ensure they have the resources necessary to give them the highest level of preparation.”

FFA Chief Executive Officer David Gallop agreed terms with the former Netherlands national team coach in Amsterdam.

Speaking from Amsterdam, Gallop said: “Bert was our preferred candidate to take the Caltex Socceroos to the World Cup so we are delighted to have secured his services.

“We went through a thorough and disciplined process and used internal and external experts to build up a profile of the person who would be the best fit for the task in Russia. We had a number of outstanding coaches very interested in the role but Bert was at the top of our shortlist.”

Van Marwijk said he was honoured to be given the responsibility of taking the Caltex Socceroos to their fourth consecutive FIFA World Cup Finals.

“I know a lot about the players and how the team has been playing after coaching against them for the two World Cup qualifiers, in 2016 and in June last year.

“I have also been impressed by the national team set-up that the FFA has developed over the past few years.

“I want to thank Steven Lowy, David Gallop and (FFA’s Head of National Performance) Luke Casserly for the confidence they have shown in me.

“My response to them has been that we are not going to Russia just to be competitive. I want to win our matches.”

Arrangements for the Head Coach role of the Caltex Socceroos after the 2018 FIFA World Cup will be announced in the near future.

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