Gerard Nijkamp succeeds Henk van Stee as Technical Director Sparta | Soccer

gate Jeroen Kapteijns

“After leaving America I consciously took the time to orient myself on the next step I wanted to take,” said the new td from Sparta. ,, The contact with Sparta has been intensive in recent days and the challenge of being part of this great club has become very interesting for me. In my eyes, Sparta is a unique club with a great identity in an interesting catchment area. What also attracts me a lot is the youth academy. Sparta has proven in the past that he is capable of letting players pass the youth academy on their own. So I am very much in favor of such a well-functioning ecosystem that begins with the youth academy. I am therefore happy to take up the challenge of working with the technical staff, the youth academy and the whole organization to take Sparta higher.

Nijkamp can start immediately, as Sparta are second to last in the Eredivisie and have a lot of problems offensively. Repair work will therefore have to be carried out immediately in the upcoming transfer period. ,, In conversations I have had with the board, short and medium term ambition has been discussed. Of course, the application in Eredivisie is the most important thing and we will work on it together to strengthen the selection during the winter break. Along with this goal it is also important to work on the other goals of the club and in the coming period I will work fully with everyone, “said Nijkamp.

Managing Director Manfred Laros is happy that Nijkamp has succeeded. “We immediately started looking for a new interpretation of the CTO position. Gerard Nijkamp was on our list from the start and the conversations we had with Gerard himself and others involved in professional football confirmed our choice. Besides the fact that he had a very successful period at PEC Zwolle, his experience and ideas are in tune with the culture of Sparta Rotterdam and his national and international scouting network is a much appreciated addition.