DEPENDING on who you ask, Robin van Persie the manager is either charming and loveable or prickly and cut-throat.
In short, a tough nut to crack – unsurprising when you consider he spent the majority of his playing days under the polar opposites of Arsene Wenger at Arsenal and Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.
Coach Robin van Persie is growng a reputation of being a tough nut to crack as a manager[/caption]
He spent the early part of his career working with Arsene Wenger at Arsenal[/caption]
He then moved into Old Trafford to win the Premier League with Ferguson[/caption]
During a dressing-room altercation with teammate Aaron Ramsey in 2012 with the Gunners after accusing the Welshman of selfishly shooting instead of teeing him up for a goal, Wenger stepped back and let the pair verbally fight it out amongst themselves.
In comparison, Ferguson would often get involved in the scuffles himself, once famously kicking a boot at David Beckham in 20023 that had him needing stitches above his eye.
Two hugely contrasting styles that left their mark on Van Persie.
So, it is anyone’s guess which character Van Persie will be playing when his Feyenoord welcome Aston Villa to Rotterdam in a tasty Europa League clash.
As a player on the pitch, he was tough, arrogant and boisterous, rising through the Arsenal ranks during their glory days from 2004 as a 21-year-old to becoming their talisman and captain before controversially leaving for rivals United in the summer of 2012.
It is a move that to this day leaves his relationship with the Emirates faithful tainted and bruised, unlikely to be fixed any time soon.
And yet the start of his coaching career to date was humble and away from the spotlight.
Having retired at his boyhood club Feyenoord in 2019, the Dutchman spent time under Dick Advocat working as a first-team coach while taking on the U16s, U18s and U19s.
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A maiden move into senior management in May 2024 with Heerenveen was viewed as bold given his lack of experience, winning just nine of 26 games in all competitions in charge before Feyenoord came calling.
Van Persie was praised at Heerenveen for his trust in talented young players, but criticised for bizarre decision-making, including subbing his keeper in the 81st minute of a cup tie against amateur opposition Quick Boys in January this year with the score at 2-1 that backfired with his side eventually losing 3-2 in extra-time.
It was a tactic made famous by legendary Dutch manager Louis van Gaal – who coached Van Persie at United and the national team.
Quick Boys matchwinner Levi van Duijn remarked: “That was actually doomed to fail; I wouldn’t have done it.
“Things like that never work in football, maybe only once with Van Gaal.”
Many considered his decision to become manager of Feyenoord mid-season in February as one doomed to fail too, including the Heerenveen fans, who could be heard chanting after he left: “Robin, Robin, who the f*** is Robin?”
Club CEO Ferry de Haan also said: “While we understand his ambition, the timing is highly inconvenient.”
But they know who he is now.
Van Persie has since won more points than any other side in the Eredivisie, winning 15 of his first 23 outings in all competitions.
Liverpool boss Arne Slot – formerly of Feyenoord before Van Persie replaced him – said in February: “He has all the ingredients to be a successful manager.
Now he’s making a name for himself as a manager[/caption]
“He has the personality to be a head coach because he is not distracted by what people say about him.
“He has worked incredibly hard in the last three or four years to become the best possible head coach he could be and that’s not what you see a lot – people working so hard every single minute of the day to become better.
“He is also very good in public, talking to the media. A smart choice for him.”
With the cameras on him, Van Persie is known to be quite the joker with a light-hearted approach to media duties, one that exudes a striking confidence and calmness in his own ability.
He once snuck into the back of a press conference to shout out questions to put off the player on the stand during a pre-match interview.
But Van Persie’s tricky and unpredictable personality has also been on show, banishing certain players without warning for refusing to sign new contracts when injured.
Loveable? Prickly? We will never have a true answer until he one day gets the chance to manage back in England, which could come sooner than many think.
