Robert Eenhoorn warns Feyenoord faces tight squeeze on Coolsingel

Robert Eenhoorn, 58, has been Feyenoord’s general director for just over a hundred days at De Kuip and says the club is "with its toes against the shoes" as it eyes a move to the Coolsingel, though he refuses to set a timetable for that relocation.

He recalls last season watching from the Philips Stadion as Feyenoord suffered a hopeless defeat to PSV. The loss prompted him to leave the stadium early that afternoon, later explaining, “I was that day riding with someone; if they leave you can’t stay.” He added, “Would they have left if Feyenoord had led 1‑6? No, that seems not.”

Past defeat at Philips Stadion

At the time Robin van Persie was the trainer, a role that collapsed almost immediately after Eenhoorn and technical director Dévy Rigaux assumed control at De Kuip. Eenhoorn said, “You are expected, when you sit in a position like me, to make decisions.” He stressed that the analysis of Van Persie’s future was based on data, not on gut feeling or results.

“We took time to analyse and finally made that decision,” he told reporters, noting that the choice was between turning the ship with the same staff or bringing in new people. He later admitted he has not seen Robin since, and reflected on the human side of football, mentioning Shaqueel’s injury and recalling his own personal tragedy of losing a child.

Decision making and staff turnover

Technical director Dévy Rigaux was already at the club before Eenhoorn arrived. “I spoke once with Dévy; if I had thought his ideas were prehistoric I would have said we wouldn’t do that,” Eenhoorn said, indicating a pragmatic approach to internal ideas.

When asked about the club’s finances, Eenhoorn replied, “I knew more at my presentation and said the basis of the club is good; you don’t only look at numbers.” He warned that the gap between Champions League and Europa League revenue is “gigantic” and that treating incidental income as structural makes budgeting difficult for any club.

Die gap with PSV

Jan de Jong, director of the Eredivisie, had predicted a 95 percent certainty of a second ticket this season, but poor performances of Dutch clubs have undermined that outlook. Eenhoorn said the club must “structurally play for the championship” and improve by more than 25 percent compared with PSV and last season’s figures if it wishes to close the widening gap.

He noted that an average of 1.9 points per game was enough for second place last year, whereas this season the target hovers around 2.25 points. More points, he argued, depend on infrastructure, talent, culture, processes and systems – with De Kuip, “a great football stadium”, at the heart of that infrastructure.