Euro 2012: Bert van Marwijk quits as Netherlands coach
Netherlands coach Bert van Marwijk has resigned following his side's disastrous Euro 2012 campaign.
His side were beaten in all three of their matches in the tournament and finished bottom of Group B
The 60-year-old refused to answer questions about his future last week but his departure has now been confirmed by the Dutch FA.
Expert qualifiers
The Dutch performance in winning nine of their 10 qualifying matches for Euro 2012 came after they won eight of their qualifiers to reach the 2010 World Cup in South Africa
Van Marwijk led the Netherlands to the 2010 World Cup final in which they were beaten by Spain in extra time.
"I have severe doubts, but have decided to take this step anyway," Van Marwijk, whose contract was due to expire in 2016, said in a statement.
The head of the KNVB (the Dutch FA), Bert van Oostveen said: "The KNVB are grateful to Van Marwijk. I personally had a very good feeling about our co-operation.
"Of course it is sad to part early, but we must be realistic."
The Netherlands won nine of their 10 qualifying matches for Euro 2012, rising to the top of the Fifa world rankings in August 2011.
But drawn in the "group of death" with Denmark and eventual semi-finalists Germany and Portugal, they lost three consecutive competitive games for the first time in their history.
This was in stark contrast to the 2010 World Cup, in which the Dutch took maximum points in Van Marwijk's first tournament as coach.
Van Marwijk, who took over from Marco van Basten in 2008, led his country all the way to the final, but his negative tactics in a bad-tempered game against Spain led to media criticism, including from Dutch legend Johann Cruyff.
The Netherlands' next competitive match will be a World Cup qualifier against Turkey in September.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18620504
