Mark Peter Gertruda Andreas van Bommel (born 22 April 1977) is a Dutchfootball coach and former player who played as amidfielder. HisFIFA World Cup profile describes him as "a tackling machine and expert ball-winner, but he also boasts a fine array of passes and a powerful shot, having been afree-kick specialist during hisPSV days".[2]
Van Bommel started his amateur career at local club RKVV Maasbracht before earning a professional contract withFortuna Sittard in 1992. His colleagues at Fortuna who would later joinPSV alongside him wereWilfred Bouma andKevin Hofland.
In his final season with PSV, having assisted the team to theDutch league title and aChampions League semi-final place, Van Bommel was expected to join his father-in-lawBert van Marwijk who at the time managed theBundesliga sideBorussia Dortmund, but Van Bommel opted to stay at PSV until the end of the 2004–05 season.
After the club'sUEFA Champions League semi-final loss toMilan and with the Eredivisie title in PSV's hands at the end of April, he confirmed he would joinBarcelona in May 2005 after the club won its owndomestic league.
Seeking to strengthen his already title-winning squad,Frank Rijkaard signed Van Bommel on a free transfer for Barcelona.[3] Van Bommel spent the summer prior to his move to Spain learning theSpanish language in aconvent inEindhoven.[4] Similar to his role at PSV where he was largely used as a holding midfielder, utilising his ball-winning skills to complement the more skillful players already at the club.[3][4] As per his squad role, throughout the league campaign he was rotated with fellow midfieldersXavi,Edmílson,Andrés Iniesta,Deco andThiago Motta, featuring in 24 domestic matches and a further 12 in cup competitions. His only season with Barcelona was largely successful as the club wonLa Liga and the2005–06 Champions League. He won his third trophy with the club on 20 August 2006 as Barça beat city rivalsEspanyol in the2006 Supercopa de España. Six days later, however, it was announced that Van Bommel had joinedBayern Munich.[4]
On 26 August 2006, Bayern Munich team managerUli Hoeneß announced Van Bommel would be joining the Bundesliga club. Media reports speculated that the move was influenced by the ongoingOwen Hargreaves transfer saga, but Hoeneß insisted the club intended to go forward with both players.[5] Bayern Munich paid 6 million euro to Barcelona in the deal.
Soon after joining theBavarian side, Van Bommel proved to be a key player for them, providing strength in the middle of the pitch. Due to his terrific performances during his first season at Bayern, he was voted the Bayern Player of the Year for2006–07, beating out longtime fan-favoritesRoy Makaay andMehmet Scholl. In the2007–08 season, he won his first silverware with club as Bayern claimed adouble of theBundesliga title andDFB-Pokal.
AfterOliver Kahn retired in 2008, Van Bommel was selected as captain, becoming the club's first ever non-German captain.[6]
On 25 January 2011, Van Bommel signed a six-month contract with Milan on a free transfer after terminating his contract with Bayern.[8][9] He was given the number four shirt, and the day after, he made his debut in a 2–1 victory againstSampdoria in theCoppa Italia quarter-final. On 29 January 2011, Van Bommel made hisSerie A debut againstCatania but was sent off after receiving a second yellow card early in the second half. Soon after, however, he adapted to Italian football and became a regular inMassimiliano Allegri's squad, contributing greatly in convincing 3–0 wins againstNapoli and city rivals Internazionale. He was a starter in the match againstRoma on 7 May 2011 that brought Milan their 18thScudetto.
On 17 May 2011, Milan announced that Van Bommel had extended his contract for one more year.[10] In the second season of his stint at Milan, he continued to be a starter and occupied the defensive midfielder position throughout the season. He decided not to stay with Milan for another season, despite being offered a new contract.
On 29 April 2012, Van Bommel announced that he would sign a contract with PSV, who confirmed the signing on 14 May.[11] After a disappointing season in which PSV finished second in theEredivisie and lost theKNVB Cup final toAZ, Van Bommel announced his retirement from professional football on 12 May 2013. In an interview after his last professional game (againstTwente in a 3–1 loss during which he was sent off after receiving two yellow cards), Van Bommel expressed an interest in a coaching career. He cited his desire to make way for younger players to shine and rest his body, specifically his injured left knee.[12]
Van Bommel's debut for theNetherlands was a 4–0 on 7 October 2000 againstCyprus. However, he did not make an appearance in a major tournament until 2006, with the Netherlands failing to qualify for the2002 FIFA World Cup and injury preventing him from playing duringUEFA Euro 2004 in Portugal.[13]
Van Bommel playing for the Netherlands at theUEFA Euro 2012
National team managerMarco van Basten was dissatisfied with Van Bommel's defensive performance in the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification match againstRomania and he was subsequently not selected for the rest of the qualification series. With many Dutch football observers believing Van Bommel's international career to be over, he was selected back into the Dutch side for the2006 FIFA World Cup.
At the2006 World Cup, Van Bommel played in three of the games for his country (all except the match againstArgentina, where both teams had already sealed their passage to the knockout stage of the tournament). He was substituted twice in these three matches. His position in the team was as right-half. His duties were mainly to play the anchor role in the Dutch three-man midfield in their usual 4–3–3 formation.
A notoriously hard-tackling competitor, he was the first of many players booked in the second-round defeat againstPortugal, dubbed "TheBattle of Nuremberg" by the press. After the World Cup, Van Bommel was not called up for theEuro 2008 qualifiers againstLuxembourg andBelarus. In September 2006, after his move to Bayern Munich, he was added to Van Basten's squad to faceBulgaria; however, Van Bommel stated (alongsideRuud van Nistelrooy) he would not play forOranje as long as Van Basten was in charge.[14] After Van Basten left to manageAjax, new Netherlands head coach (and father-in-law)Bert van Marwijk recalled Van Bommel, which led to his return in the Dutch national team. Van Bommel was part of the starting line-up in the Dutch team for the2010 World Cup, managed by Van Marwijk.[15]
Van Bommel was selected by Van Marwijk to succeedGiovanni van Bronckhorst as the new captain of the Netherlands, despite initial claims he did not want to be the new captain, having been absent from the national team for two years.[16] He captained the side for the first time in a 5–0 away win againstSan Marino. Against San Marino, Van Bommel captained the Netherlands to a record-breaking 11–0 victory inEindhoven on 2 September 2011.[17]
Following the Netherlands' elimination from theEuro 2012, Van Bommel retired from international football.[18] He scored ten goals in his 79 international appearances.[19]
He made his senior managerial debut in the2018 Johan Cruyff Shield againstFeyenoord on 4 August, losing on penalties after a goalless draw.[26] A week later in his first Eredivisie game, PSV won 4–0 at home toFC Utrecht.[27] After 14 consecutive victories at the start of the season, his side lost 2–1 at Feyenoord.[28]
On 16 December 2019, Van Bommel was sacked by PSV with the team in fourth, following a loss to Feyenoord.[29]
On 2 June 2021,VfL Wolfsburg unveiled Van Bommel as the club's new head coach, replacing the departingOliver Glasner on a two-year contract.[30] On his debut in theDFB-Pokal first round on 8 August, he used six substitutes instead of the permitted five in a 3–1 extra-time win overSC Preußen Münster, resulting in disqualification.[31] Six days later, he won 1–0 at home in his first Bundesliga game, againstVfL Bochum; the goal came from compatriotWout Weghorst.[32] Four consecutive wins meant that Wolfsburg topped the table in September, but a run of form including eight winless games in all competitions resulted in his dismissal on 24 October.[33]
On 26 May 2022,Royal Antwerp appointed Van Bommel as the club's manager on a two-year contract. He was signed by theirsporting director, his former international teammateMarc Overmars.[34] He won theBelgian Cup in his first season, defeating local rivalsK.V. Mechelen 2–0 in thefinal.[35] He also won theBelgian Pro League, securing the title on the final day with a 2–2 draw atK.R.C. Genk via an equaliser fromToby Alderweireld in the fourth minute of added time; it was the club's first league championship in 66 years.[36]
Van Bommel led Antwerp to asecond consecutive cup final, losing by a single goal toRoyale Union Saint-Gilloise on 9 May 2024. He defended his record by saying that he was not managing Chelsea or Real Madrid, and that his team had dealt with financial problems and the January sale ofArthur Vermeeren.[37] He left in June 2024 at the end of his contract and was replaced byJonas De Roeck.[38]
In October 2022, as manager of Royal Antwerp, Van Bommel was threatened in his car by a man armed with a gun. The attacker was demanding a professional contract. He was sentenced to five years in prison.[40][41]
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