Arihan, a Dutch coach who has coached the Chinese national team to win the Asian Cup runner-up and twice coached Tianjin Teda and won the FA Cup, is a good coach who has both coaching level and modesty and kindness in the minds of many Chinese fans, especially Tianjin fans. Although his second coaching tianjin Teda was mediocre, as the foreign coach who helped Tianjin football win the national championship after 31 years, AliHan's name is forever recorded in the history of Tianjin football.
Since leaving China in late 2015, Alihan has begun retirement. Until the outbreak of COVID-19, Alihan lived in his hometown of Finsterwald near the northern Dutch city of Groningen. Since his children live in Stuttgart, Germany, and Denia, Spain, he also leaves the Netherlands for a period of time throughout the year to live with his children in Germany and Spain.
AliHan is a relatively talkative person who likes to communicate with people. Although there are many acquaintances in his hometown in the Netherlands, more of Alihan's friends are footballers. As a result, Alihan later decided to buy a house near the southern Spanish city of Marbella. Not only because Spain's climate is warmer than that of the Netherlands, it is suitable for the elderly. What's more, whether during the winter break or the summer preparation period, many European teams train at a football base near Marbella every year. In this way, Alihan can reminisce with some old friends. As a 73-year-old man, it is a very comfortable life to be able to meet football friends who are close to his age, or players who have been brought by himself, and invite them to his home for a cup of coffee and talk about football, and Alihan also enjoys this life. Some time ago, Alihan returned to his hometown in the Netherlands, sold his property in the Netherlands, completely moved to Spain, and decided to live in the Iberian Peninsula.
As a very memorable experience in his coaching career, Ali Han has always been worried about Chinese football, especially the city he has coached, Tianjin. In 2019, Ali Han coincided with his assistant coach and friend Dejong during his first coaching period at TEDA, hoping to contribute to the development of Chinese football, especially Tianjin football. In the summer of 2019, due to Ali Han's ill health, he could only entrust Dejong to come to Tianjin and contact with multiple departments, hoping to produce cooperation in youth training. Whether it is training youth coaches or organizing Chinese teenagers to experience European football in Europe, it has a strong operability.
However, due to the outbreak of the new crown epidemic, this wish, which was originally intended to be fulfilled during the winter vacation of 2020, had to be shelved. But AliHan and De Jong have always been worried about Chinese football and hope to contribute to the basic work of Chinese football. Due to the rare number of interviews, online news about Alihan is very rare. "AliHan was in somewhat poor physical condition in the first two years and has gradually recovered recently, but due to the epidemic, he cannot leave Europe for China. He hopes that after the epidemic, he can go to China, especially Tianjin, to have a look. A friend who knew Ali Han well told Jinyun reporter. After learning that the Jinyun reporter hoped to understand the recent situation of Alihan, Alihan specially recorded a video and entrusted the Jinyun reporter to greet the Tianjin fans.
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"Hello friends in Tianjin! I can tell you that I miss that time, the time when I succeeded with TEDA in China. I hope you all the best. I can tell you that I miss you very much. That time in China was wonderful. I'd love to go back and have a look, but it may take some time. Until I was told that the COVID-19 pandemic was over. I'm pretty sure I'll be back in Tianjin again. Good bye! "AliHan's video content is not long, but it is sincere and full of thoughts about Tianjin. In addition, it can be seen from the video that Ali Han's mental state is good, although the years are not spared, compared with the time when he coached in Tianjin, he is still an old man with clear thinking, and he still has football dreams and misses old friends.
I hope that the new crown epidemic will pass as soon as possible, and I also hope that Ali Han is in good health and will have the opportunity to return to Tianjin in the future to see the city and team he is familiar with.