Marcel Brands officially starts his job as general manager of PSV today. With Brands, PSV is bringing in a different type of director than its predecessor Toon Gerbrands. The former technical director of the Eindhoven team has more experience in the technical football field and will certainly use this.
Of course PSV simply employs John de Jong as technical director. He will remain so for years to come. But as Marcel Brands admitted frankly: “Of course we will use my experiences. John gets an extra sparring partner. Together with Ruud van Nistelrooij we have a very large network.”
It indicates that another type of general manager is coming in. In recent years, Toon Gerbrands did not or hardly interfere with football technical matters. Brands was general director at RKC for five years at the beginning of this century. This was followed by positions as technical director. Is he experienced enough to be the general manager of PSV now?
“There is no general manager who was prepared for corona.”
“In those five years at RKC, I had a wide range of tasks. I have gained a lot of experience in the legal and commercial field. And experience isn’t everything. There was no general manager who was prepared for corona. I have a strong team around me because I’m not going to do it alone. I especially want to work together.”
And although Marcel Brands spoke to the press on Friday morning as general manager, it was of course also about the reinforcements for next season. The key question is: what about Luuk de Jong?
“Next week we’ll know if he’s coming.”
“Luuk de Jong brings much more than just goals. He can also help others play football better. Negotiations are still ongoing. There must be movement from Seville. Next week we will know if he is coming.”
The biggest ambition of Brands and PSV is to become national champions again. After four years of drought, the pressure is greater than ever. Will the Eindhoven club therefore take more risks now that it has been clearly stated that the bar must be raised? “The ambition to close the gap with Ajax is very difficult. You then have to make a choice between ambition and risk. We have to win and stay healthy. We have to find a balance between that. But if we don’t play Champions League once every two years, there is a financial risk.”
That is why the general manager can only be satisfied with one thing in a year. “When we are all on the flat cart, I am very happy.”
