Hibs new manager Marink Reedijk has sat down with Hibs TV for a wide-ranging chat about his new role and career so far.
He expressed a determination to establish a special connection with Hibs supporters as he looks to reward them with success and a side to be proud of.
The full interview follows:
Marink, thanks for taking the time to speak to Hibs TV, and welcome to Easter Road. How does it feel to be the new manager of Hibernian Football Club?
“First and foremost, thank you very much. It feels like a big honour to me that I can manage such a big Club with such a big supporter base, with a big history and who is one of the big clubs in Scotland.”
You’ve had a lot of interest from across Europe, but what was it about Hibs that made this the right place to continue your career?
“There were many factors. I always said that I would look into what kind of people are in the building, what kind of ideas we have, and whether they are aligned.
“For me, this is what I immediately found in my first conversations with the Club. Then later on, when we met, I met with Ian Gordon (Executive Chairman) and with the board.
“This was for a long period. I think we spoke six or seven hours with each other, and it was very aligned and very much the same ideas about how we want to progress on the pitch and off the pitch.
“I saw people who are willing to work together, had a very good heart for the Club and are good people.
“That was, for me, important in my next step: that I work with good people.”
Coming into this role, can you just tell us a wee bit about your prior knowledge of Scottish football and also Hibernian themselves?
“Obviously, as a person from the continent, you know Scotland from clubs such as Celtic and Rangers. I also knew Hibs due to the fact that you keep an eye on it, but it was not in the front line, so to say.
“After my first conversation, I dug deeper, and then I saw the way of playing, the way they do things, and the atmosphere here.
“I remember also the World Cup [in the summer], where the Scottish fans were excellent and were brilliant in how they perceived such matches.
“It made me want this step because I like this, and the passion and the togetherness in order to win matches, not only with the players, the staff and the people within the Club, but also with the fans, that we are altogether celebrating results and working together in the same direction.”
You’ve had a chance to have a look around the facilities this morning. You’re here at Easter Road and are going to head down to HTC later on, but what are some of your first impressions of the environment you.re going to be calling home?
“I would say that they are on a very good level, and they even want to improve, so that’s a very important thing to me. But most importantly, like I also mentioned in the earlier answer, it is important for me that the people here who work here are so kind but also have a heart for the Club.
“This is where it all starts. We can have the best facilities and the best things, which are here, but you need the people around and the people in the Club and around the Club who want to bring the Club further. This is what I really felt from the beginning.”
You’re coming here with a rich coaching background in the Netherlands, Belgium and also England. You spent some time with West Brom. Can you just give us a rundown of your career so far for those that aren’t aware of you?
“I was working at AFC Ajax in the youth academy with the likes of Donyell Malen, Matthijs de Ligt, Ryan Gravenberch and Brian Brobbey, and then spent time at West Brom with the likes of Morgan Rogers.
“I got an opportunity to be assistant coach in professional football when I was 28-ish at a second division club in Belgium.
“Ultimately, I ended up at SBV Vitesse, and I was assistant coach to Thomas Letsch, who went on to become the VfL Bochum manager in the Bundesliga and later on the Red Bull Salzburg manager.
“I also worked with Phillip Cocu, the former Dutch player who became champion with PSV four times, and I learned a lot from them.
“When the opportunity arose to go to RSC Anderlecht to become a head coach of the second team who plays in the professional league, because that is how it works in Belgium, it was for me the right moment to bring all the experiences and things I’ve learned over the years in youth football as a head coach, but also as assistant coach in professional football, together in order to bring my ideas to life.
“This went well at RSC Anderlecht with improving players and giving players a chance.
“This is also what I believe in: that you need the young players and you have to trust them. If they’re good enough, they’re old enough, and you need to make sure that everybody develops. That is what I stand for.
“That is why also SK Beveren came in later and gave me the opportunity to lead as a manager for the first time in an interesting period of the club, where we needed to bring an identity to the pitch, another identity different to what it was in years before.
“We managed that first season quite well, then last season we were unbeaten champions and had an unbeaten season, and that was an amazing and very special year for me.”
Just touching on last season, how did that feel achieving that incredible unbeaten season, as it was the first time since 1934 that a club had gone undefeated in a full season of Belgian football, but also doing it as the youngest coach in the country?
“Over the course of the summer, when you step back from it and step away from the club, you realise how special it is and how long it takes.
“I think you realise the more special it becomes for yourself, because then you start to realise this really happened and ask yourself, “Did we really do this?”
“Whereas, when you are in the moment, it is the most common thing in the world.
“It was a very interesting and special year because it brought all kinds of different types of stresses, so to say, to the dressing room, to the coaching staff, and to the expectations around the club.
“That was really good to experience in order to also be ready for the next step.”
For the Hibs supporters who are watching this interview, how would you describe your team?
“I want to be giving the fans the feeling that they can identify themselves with the team, and for me, how I see it, is that you need to be doing everything, and you have to leave everything on the pitch by being intense and aggressive but also proactive and brave.
“It is important to do things which you are capable of, and don’t hesitate to bring them on the pitch, but also in decision-making, do some things which you think are right at that moment.
“They also need a little bit of freedom within a very clear team task in order to be themselves so that every individual can shine on the pitch within their individual qualities.”
If we take a look at the squad and their start to the season, they have shown glimpses of what they are capable of, and there is good quality here within the building.
How do you strike the balance between building on what is already here but also implementing your own changes as quickly as possible?
“First and foremost, what I’ve seen is that all the guys want [to be successful], and the intensity is there, the intentions are there, and there is a certain cohesion.
“This is what’s visible, and it’s what the former manager did well at, and the thing is for me, that it’s now understanding the players better, understanding the culture here, integrating the intensity and the togetherness, and making sure that we are brave.
“But at the same time, I realise I don’t have a wand in my hand and can change it overnight.
“This will take time, but over time I want our team to be dominant, proactive, aggressive, and intense but also at the same time have this expressive and creative side of the game in order to entertain the fans and identify themselves with the team and the Club.”
You’ll have no better chance to build some of that within the camp than going away to Spain and having everyone together and that chance to build a bit of camaraderie back up this week?
“For me, it’s a really good moment to make sure that I know the individuals and what people are there, not only the football players.
“I’ve seen that in the many matches I’ve watched, but it is also learning what kind of stories are behind the people.
“How do the people link with each other, and are the things you observe on videos really the things they are good at, or is there more in the locker?
“That for me is the most important starting point, and then from there what I believe is really important is to introduce the basics of what I believe in on the ball and off the ball and in the transition moments and the basic behaviour I want to see.
“That will allow them to understand me as a manager, what I expect of them, and how it will look like, and how the way of playing would feel and be experienced.”
That trust between managers and players is so important, so how do you go about building those personal relationships across the couple of weeks?
“For me, again, it starts with knowing the people who are behind the player, and then it is also important that you stay in communication with every player.
“For me, every player counts. They come to the Club, give a lot to the Club as well. “It’s not often being seen, but what you often see is that players leave their countries or leave their hometowns, and the whole family moves with them, so for them they give a lot to the Club as well, and therefore everybody should feel that they are part of a team and part of the Club.
“This is the most important because at the end of the day we need everybody in the building, every quality of every individual, because the season is long and the players will help each other to be better, and if the ones who play are challenged by the ones who don’t play, that’s the right atmosphere because then we challenge each other.
“Not only will the opponent challenge us, but we will challenge each other as well.”
That unity also extends to the fan base. I know supporters have been very important to you wherever you’ve been, so what would be your final message to them?
“That we have to do things together. “We have to support each other through thick and thin, so we will keep on supporting, pushing and helping each other in order to come through this, and on the other side if we win, we will have some sunshine on Leith.”
