Derby County announce Utrecht partnership
Derby County announce formal ties with Dutch side FC Utrecht
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Wednesday, 30, Apr 2008 04:02
Relegated Premier League club Derby County have announced they have established a formal tie-up with Dutch Eredivisie side FC Utrecht.
The Rams, who played Utrecht in a pre-season friendly last summer, said the deal had been confirmed earlier this week ahead of today's announcement.
The deal will involve academy players as well as several members of the Derby coaching staff travelling to their partners in the Netherlands in order to tap into the resources of the Dutch club.
FC Utrecht will also initiate similar trips to England with regards to their youth programme members and backroom staff.
Derby chairman of football Adam Pearson said: "For us it is a great opportunity to tap into the experience and knowledge available in Dutch football.
"They are world renowned for their technical expertise in coaching and training, particularly with younger players.
"We will be getting our coaches over there and getting our younger players from the academy over there as that will be a great experience for them.
"Both clubs will be tapping into each other at all levels.
"FC Utrecht is a very well-run club with similar ambitions to ourselves so I think the two clubs will tie in well."
Although no specific details of the deal have been announced, the club said the link was expected to run for an initial period of two years before being re-evaluated.
Jan Willem, FC Utrecht chairman and general manager, said he expected the tie-up to further the footballing and commercial possibilities for both parties.
"This is a new experience for us but it is going to be good for both clubs," Willem explained.
"Utrecht is city number four in Holland but FC Utrecht is not club number four and we would like to develop further.
"Derby is a similar club and with this cooperation we can learn both on the technical side and on the commercial side.
"In Holland we have a very good youth academy and I hope we can both get the benefits from that."