Dutchman Patrick van Leeuwen has been appointed as the new head coach of Shakhtar Donetsk. The 54-year-old specialist has signed a two-year deal with the Miners.

This is reported by the official website of the Orange and Blacks. Van Leeuwen's contract with Shakhtar runs until 30 June 2025. He became the 36th coach in the club's history.

Last season, the Dutchman was in charge of Zorya Luhansk, which he led to bronze medals in the Premier League. As a coach, he has played 30 matches in the Ukrainian championship: 20 wins, 4 draws, 6 defeats (goal difference: 61-34). He was recognised as the best coach of the UPL in the 2022/23 season based on the results of a survey of clubs.

This is van Leeuwen's second appointment at Shakhtar. Prior to that, he spent seven years - from 2006 to 2013 - managing the Donetsk club's academy. As the head coach of Maccabi Tel Aviv, he won his only trophy in his career with the team - the Israeli Cup.

The day before, Shakhtar announced the resignation of Croatian specialist Igor Jovićević, with whom they became the champions of Ukraine and reached the last 16 of the Europa League.

As OBOZREVATEL previously reported, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko has instructed the Russian Sports Ministry to develop a plan for the development of the Shakhtar football club from the DPR and ensure its participation in competitions under the auspices of the Russian Football Union (RFU),

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