"I know, now it's honeymoon," says the new FCZ coach Mitchell van der Gaag

Ancillo Canepa has been president of FC Zurich for almost twenty years. During this time, Canepa has entrusted the first team with twenty different coaches. Each of these coaches was an "absolute ideal solution," and that was also the case with Mitchell van der Gaag when the 53-year-old Dutchman was introduced on Monday by Canepa and sporting director Milos Malenovic. "Mitchell is our absolute ideal solution," says Canepa. And yet, something is different than usual.

Of course, he was always impressed by each of his coaches when he was introduced, says Canepa. But if he had been "99 percent certain" up until now, then this time he was "100 percent sure that van der Gaag was the right coach to continue on the path we've chosen." When Canepa pronounces the new coach's name, he does so with two loud "ch" sounds. Van der Gaag lets a satisfied smile cross his face. "Chach" is how the name is pronounced.

A few minutes before the press conference began, van der Gaag sat down in his chair and silently gazed into the packed media room. As if he were studying what might await him in the coming weeks and months. Later, van der Gaag said: "I know, it's the honeymoon period." Van der Gaag also knew that any period of infatuation would end. At the very latest, when everyday life began.

The 53-year-old has seen a lot in his coaching career. "Beautiful, ugly, terrible," he says. The tattoo on his right arm is a reminder of the time in 2013 when he suffered a cardiac arrest with the Portuguese club Belenenses. He survived. He had already suffered from heart problems before that. "I'm here," he said on Monday when asked how his heart was. "I'm open, this story is part of me."

After a break, he returned to coaching, coaching various clubs in the Netherlands, and finally worked for six years in the organization of Ajax Amsterdam, most recently as assistant to Erik ten Hag. Ten Hag took his assistant to the Premier League in the summer of 2022. The night before ten Hag signed his contract with Manchester United, van der Gaag met Milos Malenovic for the first time at a dinner, according to the FCZ sporting director.

"He didn't talk much; I mostly talked to ten Haag," says Malenovic. On a Friday a few weeks ago, van der Gaag received a text message from Malenovic in Lisbon, and that same evening, the FC Zurich sporting director visited him at home. Then things moved quickly. After "three or four hours of intensive discussions," they arranged to meet in Zurich, and on May 31, after another meeting with the president and his wife, the two-year contract was officially signed.

"As a long-time Ajax fan, I immediately noticed that Mitchell, with his background, represents the kind of attacking football we want to see at FCZ," says Canepa. He has never experienced a "presentation of such high quality" as van der Gaag's; "it wasn't just a few PowerPoint slides." Canepa can judge this, "I've seen many coaching applications."

The new coach's task is to continue what he started with when Malenovic took over as sporting director a year and a half ago: reinvent FC Zurich, develop young players, and play successfully. That hasn't worked so far. FC Zurich recently missed the championship round, there's no revenue from European Cups, and there's no player in the FC Zurich squad who could be considered a lucrative transfer target for a club from a larger league. FC Zurich needs to cut costs.

Benjamin Mendy is one of the players who isn't helping to save money. The world champion still has a year left on his contract with FCZ. Since Mendy joined in February, there's been ongoing unrest. The Frenchman was charged with multiple rape counts but was acquitted due to a lack of evidence. The signing caused bitterness, and not only among FCZ's female fans. Mendy was a disappointment in terms of his performance. After sustaining a muscle injury and then going out for a night out at a disco, he disappeared. Now he's back in the squad. "We discussed what wasn't good," says Malenovic, "he needs to prove himself again with his performance."

Other players were easily removed from the payroll. Rodrigo Conceiçao, for example, and loan players Jean-Philippe Gbamin and Mounir Chouiar are gone, while offers are said to be in the works for Nikola Katic and Namanja Tosic. When Malenovic finally begins to talk about Daniel Afriyie, Canepa interrupts him. "Afriyie is on the move, it's that simple. We're not talking about names, let's work in peace." It's become hot and stuffy in the FCZ media room, and the message about the absolute 100 percent solution has long been in place.