From the moment he decided to coach Ajax, Yang Yang had been putting together his own coaching staff.
But it was not easy.
Over the past few years, Yang Yang had worked with many outstanding coaches, but nearly all of them had their own established teams. This time, he intended to build a coaching staff of his own.
"Everything's more or less settled," Yang Yang said with a chuckle.
He had spent nearly six months assembling this team, and persuading several of them had taken every ounce of effort he could muster.
"Who have you got?" Van Gaal, Van der Sar, and the others were all keen to know.
"I'll be bringing in one assistant coach and three specialist coaches. You already know the goalkeeping coach: your old colleague and friend, Frans Hoek, the current goalkeeping coach of the Netherlands National Team."
Frans Hoek was not particularly well known among fans. Unless they were seasoned followers of the game, they probably would not even remember him, because he had always coached alongside Van Gaal. From Ajax to Barcelona, then Alkmaar, Bayern Munich, the Netherlands National Team, and Manchester United, he had followed Van Gaal throughout.
After Van Gaal left Manchester United, Frans Hoek was invited back to the Netherlands National Team on a two-year contract that would expire after the Russia World Cup. He had originally intended to renew it, but Yang Yang and Van Gaal stepped in and persuaded him otherwise.
Frans Hoek's ability was beyond question. Quite apart from the many outstanding goalkeepers he had developed, greats such as Van der Sar, Neuer, and De Gea had all flourished under him. More importantly, he had virtually rewritten the way goalkeepers were trained in European football, particularly in Spain.
From Valdes, Reina, and Casillas to later goalkeepers such as