Former NZ Football head of high-performance Fred de Jong says he expects a high volume of international interest in the vacant All Whites head coach’s role but it may be an expensive job to fill.
Speaking on SENZ Mornings with host Ian Smith, the former All Whites striker said:
“Some of the international coaches are on big money, but having said that, the New Zealand job is a hugely attractive job for an international coach.
“We will play a decent amount of games over the next cycle (and) we’re pretty much one of the only teams guaranteed to go to the World Cup now, given the format.”
The FIFA World Cup will have 48 teams at the 2026 finals, increasing New Zealand’s chances of qualification.
The All Whites have been coached by Darren Bazeley on an interim basis since Danny Hay left the role in December.
De Jong said hiring an established coach would have a big price tag.
“It’s an expensive business,” de Jong said.
“We’ve seen that with the John Herdman example with the All Whites, he was supposedly the preferred candidate, he’s on $700,000 a year Canadian so that’s not chump change.
“I know that Anthony Hudson was on around the $200,000-250,000 mark by the time he left (NZ) so there’s a big gap there.”
Main photo: Fred de Jong … new coach could be costly. Photo: Shane Wenzlick / Phototek.
Listen to de Jong’s interview with Ian Smith
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