Van Stee to succeed Koster

SC Excelsior's decisive promotion/relegation match against BVO Emmen on Thursday will be coach Adrie Koster's last game in charge after the Dutch club decided to replace him with Henk van Stee next season.

Van Stee contract
Koster leaves after six years in charge of the Rotterdam club. Van Stee, the former head of Feyenoord's youth department, has signed a three-year contract and will begin his new job on 1 July.

'Strong selection'
The 41-year-old Van Stee was fired as coach of AZ Alkmaar in October last year. "I hope that Feyenoord's talented players [who are at Excelsior on loan] like Said Boutahar, Gil Swerts and Steve Olfers will stay," he said. "But even if they leave, I know for sure I will be getting a strong selection of players."

Bad run
Under Koster, Excelsior rose from the bottom of the First Division to reach the Eredivisie last season. However a bad run of late saw the club finish 17th in the 18-team division - thus sealing Koster's fate.

Must-win game
Excelsior must beat Emmen on Thursday in Group B of the promotion/relegation play-offs to stand any chance of maintaining their top-flight status. Even if they win they could still be relegated.