Once bitter rivals in the fire of El Clasico, wearing the shirts of Barcelona and Real Madrid, Xavi Hernandez and Ruud van Nistelrooy are now set to work side by side. The Spanish coach has decided to keep the Dutchman in his new backroom staff with the Netherlands.
Nigel de Jong, director of football at the Dutch football association, explained that Xavi has begun assembling his coaching staff ahead of leading the national team in the Nations League. The aim, he stressed, is to combine existing expertise with fresh ideas, giving the coach and players the best possible support during international breaks.
Van Nistelrooy stays on, bringing coaching experience from PSV Eindhoven, Manchester United and Leicester City. He joined the Netherlands’ staff last February and was among the group that accompanied the team at the 2026 World Cup.
Xavi also brought back Adel Ramzy, the former coach of the Netherlands Under-19s, drawing on his knowledge of Dutch football and young players plus his previous work with the youth teams of Paris Saint-Germain and Morocco’s Wydad.
For the goalkeeping role, Xavi turned to Patrick Lodewijks, who worked with the national team before leaving in January 2023. Ivan Torres will once again take charge of physical preparation.
Familiar faces round out the group. Oscar, Xavi’s brother, and Sergio Alegre have both worked with him before, joining Torres so that the Spanish coach surrounds himself with people he knows and trusts.
De Jong confirmed the make-up of the staff was designed to blend local expertise with prior knowledge of Xavi and his methods. Van Nistelrooy and Lodewijks bring deep knowledge of Dutch football, Ramzy knows the new generation of players, and Oscar, Sergio and Ivan understand exactly how Xavi likes to work.