PROFILE: Giovanni van Bronckhorst

Rangers have confirmed the appointment of Giovanni van Bronckhorst as their new manager.

The Dutchman becomes the 17th permanent manager at Ibrox as the successor to Steven Gerrard, who left to join English Premier League club Aston Villa last week.

The appointment comes three days before the Gers’ face Hibernian in the League Cup semi-final and exactly seven days before their Europa League Group Stage match against Sparta Prague.

But who exactly is the new man in charge of the Scottish Champions, and what experience does he have?

Feyenoord (1993-1998, 2007-2010)

Van Bronckhorst was part of the youth academy at Feyenoord where at the age of 15, he signed a professional contract at the club. He made his breakthrough in the 1995/96 season where he became a regular in midfield.

He was also part of the squad who won the KNVB Cup in 1994/95.

Van Bronckhorst returned to Rotterdam at the end of his playing career, where he again won the KNVB cup in 2007/08.

Rangers and winning the treble (1998-2001)

Van Bronckhorst left Feyenoord to join up with fellow Dutchman, Dick Advocaat in the summer of 1998.

At Rangers he won two Premierships, two Scottish Cups and one League Cup across three years.

Van Bronckhorst was consistently praised for his quality of play and skill in midfield and was a hit with the Rangers support.

It’s that success and status which has excited Rangers supporters as he makes an emotional return to begin a new era at Ibrox.

Arsenal (2001-2004)

Van Bronckhorst was signed from Rangers for £8m by Premier League side Arsenal in 2001.

While at the London club, Van Bronckhorst won the 2001/02 league title and the FA Cup in 2002/03.

Barcelona and move to left-back (2004-2007)

After a loan spell in Spain with the La Liga side, Van Bronckhorst signed a deal with the Catalonia club.

It was in Spain where Van Bronckhorst reached the pinnacle of his playing career, as he won back-to-back league titles in 2004/05 and 2005/06.

Under the leadership of head coach Frank Rijkaard, he also won the Champions League in 2005/06 season.

It was while for the Spaniards that Van Bronckhorst adopted the nickname ‘Gio’.

2010 World Cup with the Netherlands

Van Bronckhorst was chosen to lead the team in the 2010 World Cup.

He led his team to runners-up in the tournament, while also scoring what has been called one of the best goals in World Cup history.

Manager of Feyenoord (2015-2019)

After serving as assistant manager between 2010-2015, Van Bronckhorst won the KNVB Cup in his first season as manager of the club, while the following year he delivered the club’s first Eredivisie title in 18 years.

Van Bronckhorst also had a short stint in charge of Guangzhou City in China last year, however he resigned after one season due to the pandemic.

Giovanni Van Bronckhorst watched from the stand as Feyenoord took on Rangers in the Europa League