Besiktas has announced the hiring of Dutchman Giovanni van Bronckhorst as head coach. Van Bronckhorst, who was a left-back for Barcelona from 2004 to 2007 and coached Rangers until 2022, has signed a 2-year contract, with an option for one more. He will be assisted by Jean Paul van Gastel, formerly coach of NAC Breda, and Serdar Topraktepe, who has been the interim coach of Besiktas since January.

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The signing marks the beginning of "a new era" for the Istanbul-based team, according to a statement from the club. This season, Besiktas finished sixth in the Turkish Super Lig.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst, 49, joined Arsenal in 2001 as a left-back and was loaned to Barcelona a year later, where he remained until 2007. He ended his playing career in 2010 at Feyenoord and began as an assistant coach there a year later. Between 2015 and 2020, he was the head coach of Feyenoord before moving to the Chinese club Guangzhou and then to Rangers.