Koeman has a clause in his contract that allows him to join Barcelona

Netherlands head coach Ronald Koeman has a clause in his contract that would make taking over at Barcelona a very real possibility.

The former Barcelona defender has often been linked with becoming head coach at the Camp Nou, particularly when Ernesto Valverde‘s job was under threat, and he would be able to from next summer.

The sporting director of the Dutch Football Federation (KNVB), Nico-Jan Hoogma, revealed in an interview with Fox Sports that Koeman has a clause in his contract that would enable teams to hire him after the conclusion of the 2020 European Championship, assuming they pay a fee.

“Agreements were reached in this regard [for Koeman to leave], but [teams] would have to pay to do so,” Hoogma explained, without stating how much it would cost to terminate Koeman‘s contract.

However, Hoogma did state that he hopes that Koeman will see out his contract in charge of the Oranje, which includes the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

“The success of the Dutch national team can help him, but I hope we finish this process and work together until the World Cup in Qatar,” he noted.

“I hope we can work together for a long time because I think it’s going very well.”

In any case, the sporting director admitted that Koeman would like to return to Barcelona.

“Ronald has always indicated that he wants to be a coach at Barcelona one day,” Hoogma added.

“We’ll see what happens.”