Frank de Boer’s reputation as a manager was not great heading into last night’s 7-0 win over Gibraltar – and somehow, after one of the biggest wins in Dutch football history, it’s got even worse.
de Boer, even if he was a superb player throughout the 90s and early 00s, would be lying if he said he hasn’t ever had any doubts about his capability as a football manager.
MORE: (Video) Van de Beek with a Tidy Finish During The Netherlands vs Gibraltar
The former Ajax and Barcelona man was once described as the “worst manager in the history of the Premier League” by Jose Mourinho (via the Guardian), having been sacked just 10 weeks after his appointment at Crystal Palace.
de Boer also failed miserably at Inter Milan, fell below expectations at Atalanta United, while he only has four wins in his opening nine Netherlands games, with one of those coming against Gibraltar, who are ranked 195th in the world.
Though, de Boer does not appear to have any great interest in acknowledging the fact that Gibraltar are minnows on the international stage, nor does he seem particularly concerned with the fact that last night he was managing a historic football nation against an island with a population of 30,000.
Post-match, de Boer had no intention of praising Gibraltar for their heroics efforts, with their resolve not being broken until the 41st minute of the contest. Instead, as per AS, he decided to criticise their play style:
“I am very satisfied with the seven goals, but it is really almost anti-football.”
“All the players going down after a single touch, while every time the whole bench went crazy, complaining to the referee.”
“The goalkeeper was taking a minute for a goal-kick… I got tired of it. I’m glad the game is behind us.”
Is this man determined to become a meme? Can you imagine what the score would have been if Gibraltar decided to go toe-to-toe with the Netherlands? What on EARTH was he thinking?