Subway Socceroos’ Assistant Coach René Meulensteen will remain with the senior national team for the next FIFA World Cup cycle, after re-signing with Football Australia for a further three and a half years.
Meulensteen has been a key member of the Subway Socceroos and Olyroos’ coaching staff since joining Head Coach Graham Arnold’s staff in 2018.
The former Manchester United first team coach said he is delighted to have signed on with the Subway Socceroos and highlighted the potential as one of the key reasons for staying on.
“The potential, the opportunities, and the challenges that lie ahead are the reasons why I’ve chosen to sign on for a further campaign,” explained Meulensteen.
“The first question I would ask myself as a coach if I’ve worked with a group of players for a number of years is, ‘have I got an opportunity to bring more out of it (the program) in terms of the set-up of the squad, what is the make-up of it, is there enough young players coming through’, and that’s the case here (with the Socceroos), so I’m very excited to be carrying on”.
The 58-year-old will continue to be based in England, where he will work with the growing number of Australians playing in leagues throughout Europe, whilst monitoring other talent and opposition teams.
Upon confirming the reappointment, Arnold said: “René played an important role in the success of our Socceroos and Olyroos’ campaigns over the past four years, and I’m delighted he has agreed to remain with the senior national team for a further World Cup cycle.
“We both firmly believe that the best is yet to come for this current and emerging group of players, with our sights set on claiming next year’s AFC Asian Cup and automatic qualification for the FIFA World Cup in 2026, where we want to create further history for Australian football,” concluded Arnold.
Meulensteen will take his place next to Arnold during the current Subway Socceroos two matches against Ecuador in Sydney and Melbourne.