According to a report by The Athletic, FC Cincinnati will hire Dutch manager Ron Jans as its next head coach.
Jans, a 60-year-old Zwolle-born former striker, last managed for PEC Zwolle, the same club he spent the majority of his playing career with. He was in charge at Zwolle for four years, winning the KNVB-Bekker in his first season before seeing his tenure coming to a close in 2017 to become the director of football at FC Groningen, a position he left at the end of this past season.
Jans will work for fellow Dutchman Gerard Nijkamp who was hired as club General Manager back in May. Nijkamp said after he was brought on board that the managerial job was a “caretaker” position until the new stadium opens in 2021, although he clarified that statement later to allow for the current manager’s reassessment before that time.
The Dutchman will take over for Alan Koch who was fired after 11 matches this season, with the club citing a “declining club culture” rather than poor results on the pitch. Cincinnati had won just two of its first 11 games of league play. Yoann Damet, who has served as interim manager since Koch’s firing and has won three of hist first 10 matches, will stay on as an assistant, according to the report.
The report said terms of the hire were unknown and did not give a timeline for Jans’ introduction, only saying that he is waiting on the approval of a work permit.