Earlier this afternoon Borussia Dortmund unveiled Peter Bosz as their new Head Coach. The Dutchman, whose contract will initially run for two years and is set to expire at the end of the 2018/19 season, will take over the reins on 1 July.

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Borussia Dortmund and their new Head Coach from the Netherlands share a vision of the way the game should be played and a passion for working with youngsters and helping them to develop. Bosz is a firm follower of the footballing philosophy founded by legendary compatriot Johan Cruyff, who was in charge of Bosz's former club Ajax between 1985 and 1996 before spending eight years with Catalan giants Barcelona. Bosz's teams combine possession with counter-pressing and explosive attacking play. The 53-year-old "leaves his wild youngsters in attack to roam free and they pay him back with a spectacular brand of football," read a report by the Frankfurter Rundschau on the new coach, who has been coveted by several of Europe's top clubs after last season guiding Ajax to second place in the Dutch top-flight – one point behind eventual champions Feyenoord – and the UEFA Europa League final, where they were beaten 2-0 by Manchester United.

Bosz, who speaks perfect German, will have the chance to build on his reputation for working with young and highly-talented players when he takes over a Borussia Dortmund squad boasting the likes of Ousmane Dembélé, Christian Pulisic, Felix Passlack, Alexander Isak and Emre Mor. Last season he placed his full faith in youngsters. When Ajax faced Willem II on the final day of the season, he fielded the youngest starting XI in the capital club's history with an average age of 20.4 years.

As a player, Bosz won the Eredivisie title with Feyenoord as well as three Dutch Cups at the beginning of the 1990s. He wore the orange shirt of the Netherlands on eight occasions and was part of the squad at the 1992 European Championships in Sweden.

After hanging up his boots, Bosz coached Bosz AGOVV Apeldoorn, BV De Graafschap, Heracles Almelo, Vitesse Arnheim and Maccabi Tel Aviv before joining Ajax. Between 2006 and 2010 he worked as the Technical Director at Feyernoord, where he brought BVB midfielder Nuri Sahin to Rotterdam on loan for the 2007/08 campaign.

Peter Bosz and Borussia Dortmund's paths have crossed on another occasion too: on 4 April 1998 he played in midfield for Hansa Rostock as the North Coast club beat then-World Club Cup winners Dortmund by a 3-1 scoreline at the Ostseestadion.

From now on, though, the 53-year-old will be hoping for nothing but victories for the Black and Yellows.
Boris Rupert