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