Maurice Steijn will also be the coach of Sparta Rotterdam next season. The coach from The Hague has extended his contract at Het Kasteel until mid-2026, the club announced on Friday.
The 51-year-old Steijn returned as coach of Sparta in November, after the dismissal of Jeroen Rijsdijk. Under his leadership, the team had a strong second half of the season. Based on the results in that period, Sparta would even have finished in fifth place.
Now he is opting for continuity. “The moment of joining was difficult, but when I see what we have achieved with the club, it makes me proud,” he says in the club statement. “Sparta has been on the rise for years and the entire club is still making progress. I am happy to contribute to that.”
Technical director Gerard Nijkamp speaks of “a strong combination” between club and trainer. “Since his return, we have seen that Sparta is performing strongly. It is great that we can continue on this basis.”
Steijn working on second period at Sparta
Steijn also led Sparta in the 2022/2023 season and then surprisingly finished sixth. That earned him a transfer to Ajax, but that adventure was not a success. He was fired there after only a few months.
After a year without a club, Steijn returned to Rotterdam in November last year. After a difficult start, he quickly secured safety, after which Sparta even came close to the play-offs for European football in the final phase of the season.