Hendrie Krüzen named Rinus Michels Manager of the Month
Hendrie Krüzen has been voted Rinus Michels Manager of the Month for November. The Heracles Almelo interim coach received the award for his impressive results in the Eredivisie.
Biggest revival by a bottom-placed team in 30 years
The 61-year-old Almelo native successfully took charge following the departure of head coach Bas Sibum. On his first day, Heracles sat bottom of the table with one win from ten matches and a goal difference of –23. Within four weeks, the team rediscovered its energy and attacking spirit. Heracles produced a stunning run of results, including 8-2 (vs PEC Zwolle), 1-2 (vs Excelsior), 4-2 (vs Go Ahead Eagles) and a 1-1 draw (vs Fortuna Sittard).
Across the last four matchweeks, only PSV collected more points (12) than Heracles (10), while Heracles scored more goals than any other team (15 goals).
For the first time in over 30 years, a team bottom of the Eredivisie won three matches in a row (last achieved by FC Dordrecht). It was also the first time Heracles themselves had managed such a streak since 2019.
Their resurgence lifted Heracles off the bottom, overtaking Telstar and climbing to 16th place after fourteen matches. Their goal difference improved significantly (from –23 to –14), and the club now has a real opportunity to climb out of danger in the coming weekend.
Hendrie Krüzen with the award, presented by ESPN analyst Kenneth Perez.
Fourth manager to win this season
Krüzen is the fourth manager to win the award this season, following Robin van Persie (August), Dick Lukkien (September) and Maarten Martens (October)
For Krüzen, the award is the perfect ending to a remarkable interim spell. With an unbeaten run behind him, he was able to hand over the reins with confidence to Ernest Faber, who began this week as the new head coach of Heracles Almelo.
About the awards
The Rinus Michels Manager of the Month award is a new initiative by Eredivisie CV, Coaches Betaald Voetbal, De Voetbaltrainer and ESPN, created to shine a spotlight on managerial excellence in Dutch top-flight football.
