Sydney: The man who mentored English Premier League heavyweights Vincent Kompany and Eden Hazard has been appointed to help unearth and develop Australia’s next crop of star players.
Former Belgium youth coach Eric Abrams will take over as Football Federation Australia’s (FFA) new technical director overseeing its Elite Youth Player Development and Coach Education strategies.
“Eric has all the skills and attributes we were looking for when we set out on a worldwide recruitment process,” said FFA chief executive David Gallop.
“Eric has an impressive background in elite youth development in Belgium and has played an integral role in producing what the technical experts believe is one of the strongest groups of international players in world football.”
During his tenure as Belgium’s youth coach between 2002-2013, Abrams oversaw the emergence of what is considered a “golden generation” of players.
As well as helping guide the careers of Manchester City captain Kompany and Chelsea playmaker Hazard, he was also instrumental in overseeing Everton’s Romelu Lukaku and Tottenham’s Jan Vertonghen — all of whom played at the World Cup this year.
“I’m excited to be starting work with the youth structures in Australia,” Abrams said.
“I have heard a lot about Australian football and I look forward to working with the players and coaches to help develop young players for the local leagues and national teams.”
