Go Ahead Eagles has rapidly found a successor to the departed coach Paul Simonis. Melvin Boel from FC Dordrecht will be the new coach of the cup winner from Deventer.
Simons announced his departure from Go Ahead on Thursday, which he exchanged for Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg. Technical managers Paul Bosvelt and Marc van Hintum had already taken this scenario into account in recent days and had contacted FC Dordrecht for Boel. He has signed for three years in Deventer.
“When Go Ahead Eagles came on the line earlier this week about a possible head coach position, I didn’t have to think about it for long,” says Boel on the Go Ahead Eagles website. “I know Go Ahead Eagles as a warm club. The conversations with the management give me a lot of confidence.”
The 38-year-old Boel was in charge of FC Dordrecht last season for the first time on his own and he did well. The club from South Holland finished in fifth place in the Keuken Kampioen Divisie and qualified for the play-offs for promotion.
In it, FC Dordrecht went wrong in the semi-finals against Willem II, which took the penalties better in a thrilling two-legged match. The club from Tilburg still relegated from the Eredivisie in the final due to a defeat against Telstar.
Boel previously did an internship at Go Ahead
For Boel, his move to Go Ahead Eagles is also a return to familiar territory. In the 2022/2023 season, as a youth coach at Feyenoord, he did an internship with then Go Ahead coach René Hake. He was already in the picture last season to become head coach of Go Ahead, but then he had just signed with FC Dordrecht.
“We are happy that we have been able to sign Melvin,” says technical manager Bosvelt. “We spoke with two good candidates, with Melvin having the advantage that he knows our way of playing and working well through his year of internship under René Hake.” It is not known who the other candidate was.
Boel joins Go Ahead Eagles after a historic high point. Last season, the club won the KNVB Cup for the first time in its 123-year history and finished in a commendable seventh place in the Eredivisie. As a result, the club can participate in the Europa League next season.
“With Melvin, we are bringing in a young, ambitious coach,” says technical manager Van Hintum. “At FC Dordrecht, Melvin has shown that he has a clear vision in the field of football with limited resources.” Go Ahead starts preparing for the new season next week.