Mark van Bommel signed a contract for two seasons with Royal Antwerp FC on Thursday. The 45-year-old trainer is the successor of Brian Priske at the Belgian club of technical director Marc Overmars.
Van Bommel takes two Dutch assistants to Antwerp: Andries Ulderink and John Stegeman. Last season, 52-year-old Ulderink was assistant coach at FC Twente and Stegeman (45) was head coach in the Netherlands at Heracles Almelo, Go Ahead Eagles and PEC Zwolle.
“In the coming weeks, the time will be taken to further fill in and expand the sporting staff,” Antwerp reports in a statement declaration† “Mark van Bommel and his staff will be introduced to the press on Monday 20 June at the first training for the new season.”
Van Bommel, who played for Orange together with Overmars at the beginning of this century, was without a club since he had to leave VfL Wolfsburg in October after thirteen matches. Before that, the former midfielder was head coach at PSV for a year and a half, where he was also fired.
First big decisions by Overmars
Antwerp said goodbye to Priske last Monday. The Dane led the national champion of 1929, 1931, 1944 and 1957 to fourth place in the Jupiler Pro League in his only season with ‘The Great Old’. That was not good enough in the eyes of Overmars and the very rich and very ambitious club owner Paul Gheysens.
Priske’s dismissal and Van Bommel’s appointment are Overmars’ first major decisions since the former attacker was appointed technical director of Antwerp in March.
The 49-year-old Overmars had to leave Ajax just two months ago, after the club received reports from several female employees about the cross-border behavior of the director of football affairs.