Sporting Anderlecht have appointed a new coach. In a press statement released on Sunday the 34-times Belgian League Champions announced that the Dutchman Fred Rutten will be the successor to Hein Vanhaezebrouck who was sacked last month after a string of disappointing performances and results.
fred Rutten starts work on Monday and will travel with Anderlecht’s first team to their training camp in Pinatar in the south of Spain.
Fred Rutten’s appointment brings to an end several weeks of uncertainty at Anderlecht. There had been much speculation about who would become the club’s new coach. Big names such as Frank de Boer, Philip Cocu and Martin Jol were cited as candidates for the job. After the appointment of Frank Arnesen as RSCA’s new Technical Director the clever money was on the new first team coach also being from The Netherlands, although the Dane Kasper Hjulmand was also said to be in the running.
56-year-old Fred Rutten has previously coached the Dutch clubs FC Twente, PSV, Feyenoord and Vitesse as well as the German club Schalke 04 and Al Shabab in the UEA. Last year he resigned as coach of the Israeli club Maccabi Haifa.
With 34 points from 21 games Sporting Anderlecht is currently 5th in the Belgian First Division, 14 points behind the league leaders Racing Genk.
