Dick Advocaat ‘to return’ as Curaçao head coach one month before the World Cup | OneFootball

Curaçao, bound for their first World Cup, are poised to bring back Dick Advocaat as head coach with a month to go.

According to De Telegraaf, Fred Rutten, appointed in late February after Advocaat stepped down, is set to be replaced by the 78-year-old. The upheaval comes with the tournament running from 11 June to 19 July.

Advocaat led the island of 150,000 to qualification in November, then resigned in February to care for his seriously ill daughter. Her condition has since improved.

The federation initially resisted a change, then agreed to relieve Rutten of his duties. He oversaw two March friendlies, losing 0-2 to China and 1-5 to Australia. His departure was made official on Monday evening.

His view was that resigning was the right decision to protect healthy working relations, that time was short and Curaçao had to move forward, and that he regretted the situation while wishing everyone well.

If finalised, Advocaat would head to a third World Cup after coaching the Netherlands in 1994 and South Korea in 2006. Curaçao are in Group E with Germany, Ecuador and Côte d'Ivoire.

Source: L'Équipe