From his role as coach of the Under 21 of NAC Breda, Robert Molenaar recently moved on to head coach of the first. The 53-year-old born Zaandammer started the preparation last Monday. “It still feels a bit awkward, because you always have to find your way.”
Compared to its previous clubs, NAC Breda feels like ‘coming home’. Not because he has worked there before, but because he is at the club within half an hour of his house. “That was different at Volendam, Almere and Roda,” says the trainer who lives in Roosendaal. Being head coach in professional football again feels even more like coming home to Molenaar. His last job as person ultimately responsible was in 2019 when he was trainer of Almere City FC.
“For me it is another opportunity to show that what I stand for can also be successful. At a certain level I have shown that.” Molenaar then points to the clubs where he had to say goodbye prematurely (Volendam, Roda JC and Almere City). “That’s where it kind of almost imploded. So in a way, I performed there too, but it didn’t yield any silverware.” By this he means that after his departure from those clubs, things have not gone well. At Volendam, the success was only noticeable a few years later.
“So in a way I performed there too, but it didn’t bring any silverware”
Where the expectations at those clubs were higher than Molenaar could live up to, he tries to temper them at NAC. He hopes to have time to build a team. “The best coaches were almost thanked in the first season. Erik ten Hag at Utrecht and Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United also had to be given some time to make things their own way.” Whether Molenaar also intends to become the Ferguson of NAC, he laughs away. “That may be a bridge too far at this time – and certainly at NAC. But when it comes to working methods and cooperation and loyalty, I think that would be fine.”
takeover
Dark clouds have been hanging over the Rat Verlegh Stadium in Breda lately. “We all know that NAC can be a troubled club. That has also been shown in recent years.” He hopes that the transfer of shareholders will bring peace within the club. The NOAD Foundation played a key role in the takeover. It prevented the sale of NAC Breda to the British consortium City Football Group, which includes Manchester City. The group insisted on continuing the sale to the group of local investors.
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That acquisition seems only a matter of time. Although Molenaar is positive about the takeover, he notices that a number of processes have come to a standstill. “We have to take the time to vet the squad. Perhaps we should go through more transfer windows than just this one, as the old owners are not yet off the scene. The current owners are now limping on the thought: ‘Now that we have the house I’m not going to work on my bathroom anymore’, so we have to be patient and make do with what we have.”
“Erik ten Hag and Sir Alex Ferguson also had to get some time to make things their own way”
transition year
Last year, Molenaar coached the under 21 at NAC and experienced everything up close. Due to a corona infection at Edwin de Graaf, Molenaar already coached one game of the first last year. “Of course that tasted like more,” says the trainer, who has five players from his previous team train with him so that he has a large group at his disposal.
“I think there are very few clubs that do not want to make the play-offs. We will also say that”, But Molenaar does not want to blow too high. “We have to exercise some caution, because we know what it is when we sow expectations that we can’t live up to.
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