Feyenoord has appointed Robin van Persie as the club’s under-16s assistant manager next season.
The 37-year-old, whose son Shaqueel is a member of the youth team, had already been working part-time at the club, coaching the first-team’s strikers.
The former Arsenal and Manchester United striker will continue to support first-team manager Arne Slot in training while also assisting fellow ex-pro Brian Pinas with the under-16 team.
In a club statement Van Persie said: “After my professional career I mainly started to focus on things in football that I like to do.
“Together with my management team, I focused on activities that suit me. I am therefore very happy that from next season I can transfer my knowledge from my professional career to the next generation on a daily basis.
“And the fact that I can do that at Feyenoord makes it extra special. This gives me a lot of energy and it also feels good to contribute to the players’ development within the club.”
Van Persie started and ended his professional career with Feyenoord.
He joined the club in 1999 at the age of 16 and made his senior debut a year later.
He clocked up 78 first-team appearances in all competitions in his three years at the club, winning the UEFA Cup in 2002 as well as the Dutch football talent of the year award.
After his successful years in the Premier League at Arsenal and Manchester United, he signed for Fenerbahce before returning to Feyenoord in 2018 ahead of his retirement.
Van Persie played his last professional match for Feyenoord on May 12, 2019, in which they lost 2-0 against ADO Den Haag.
A year after his retirement, Van Persie took on his first managerial role as Feyenoord’s first-team assistant coach under Dick Advocaat, with whom he’d previously worked at Fenerbahce.
At the time, he said: “It is not an official position. So it’s hard for me to give it a title. I don’t see myself as a strikers’ coach, for example. I think it’s a win-win: I’ll find out here whether I like doing this and I’ll help the staff a bit.”
He added: “Over the past year I’ve only done things I enjoy.
“I’m working as an analyst in England, I’m travelling a lot with my family, play a lot of sport. I’ll now see if this is something I enjoy.”
Van Persie won the FA Cup with Arsenal and the Premier League title with Manchester United and he is the all-time top scorer for the Netherlands men’s national team.
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