Maurice Steijn named Rinus Michels Manager of the Month
Maurice Steijn was named Rinus Michels Coach of the Month on Friday. The Sparta Rotterdam head coach received the award for his performances in the Eredivisie during January.
Historic run for Sparta
Maurice Steijn enjoyed an outstanding month with Sparta Rotterdam. The Rotterdammers went unbeaten after victories over Heracles Almelo (2–0), Feyenoord (3–4), FC Utrecht (0–1) and FC Groningen (2–0). This impressive run lifted Sparta up to fifth place, just four points behind second-placed Feyenoord.
It marks a historic achievement for the Kasteelheren. For the first time since the 1984/85 season, Sparta sit inside the top five after 21 matches. In addition, the club have now won five consecutive league games — their longest winning streak since 1972/73. Sparta also collected the maximum number of points in a single month for the first time since September 1983.
Sparta went unbeaten in four matches in January.
Away win at De Kuip
The away victory at De Kuip was the standout result. Sparta claimed their first away win against a traditional top-three club since March 2000 — once again against Feyenoord (1–2). It was also their first league victory over a traditional top-three side since March 2017, having failed to do so in the previous 44 matches.
Sixth different winner
Maurice Steijn is the sixth coach to win the monthly award this season. Notably, a different coach has been selected each month so far. He follows Robin van Persie (August), Dick Lukkien (September), Maarten Martens (October), Hendrie Krüzen (November) and Fred Grim (December) as Rinus Michels Coach of the Month.
Maurice Steijn with the award, presented by ESPN reporter Kenneth Perez.
About the awards
The Rinus Michels Coach of the Month is a new initiative this season by Eredivisie CV, Coaches Betaald Voetbal, De Voetbaltrainer and ESPN. With this award, the initiators aim to create a new platform recognising coaches in the highest tier of Dutch football.
As with the nominations for the annual Rinus Michels Award, all 18 coaches are assessed using a data model developed by Hypercube. The model takes into account, among other factors, match results and goals scored and conceded. The strength of the team itself and the quality of the opposition are also included.
The latter is determined using the Euro Club Index (ECI). In the ECI rankings, European clubs are ranked weekly based on their performances in domestic and international competitions. This score reflects how strong a club is at any given moment and whether it is overperforming or underperforming.
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