Former Dutch star Ronald Koeman has been appointed coach of the national team and given the Herculean task of restoring the country’s pride after a series of humiliating defeats.

The national football association (KNVB) said in a statement that it had “reached an agreement with Ronald Koeman over his appointment as the Dutch national coach.”

The contract was with “immediate effect” and would include the 2022 World Cup, it added.

The Dutch national team failed to qualify for this year’s World Cup after a disastrous qualifying campaign, which followed on from the failure to qualify for Euro 2016.

Koeman was last in a managerial role at Everton, leading the club to a seventh-placed finish last season but getting sacked in October with the club lurching towards the relegation zone following an alarming dip in form.