{
  "id": 697840,
  "title": "Xavi Hernández appointed as the Netherlands' head coach, replaces Ronald Koeman again",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/12/xavi-hernandez-appointed-as-the-netherlands-head-coach-replaces",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-12T20:39:24.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/xavi-hern-ndez-appointed-netherlands-200739713.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Xavi Hernández has been appointed as the new head coach of the Dutch national team, succeeding Ronald Koeman following a disappointing World Cup performance. The Dutch football organization quickly moved to appoint Hernández after interim coach Arne Slot ruled out his involvement, citing a desire to focus on domestic management. Hernández, a renowned Barcelona legend, expressed his honor at becoming the Dutch coach, citing his connection to Dutch football and his respect for coaches like Louis van Gaal and Frank Rijkaard. Hernández, who spent 17 years at Barcelona, has been largely unemployed since leaving the club in 2021 to manage Al-Sadd in Qatar. His appointment as head coach of the Dutch team comes as the squad enters a transitional phase, with several key players over 30 years old.",
  "summary": "Just as he did at Barcelona in 2021, Xavi Hernández has replaced Ronald Koeman as head coach, this time taking charge of the Netherlands, marking his first foray into international management",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Yahoo Sports",
        "title": "Unai Hernández, reinforcement for the midfield",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/14/unai-hernandez-reinforcement-for-the-midfield",
        "published": "2026-08-14T17:35:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}