Feyenoord eyes Irish keeper coach Merz as Nieminen’s successor

In a quiet office at De Kuip, Feyenoord have already reached out to 33‑year‑old Irish goalkeeper coach Justin Merz, who is currently on the staff of Danish side Brøndby IF. The club hopes Merz can become the successor to Jyri Nieminen as the new keeper trainer.

Jyri Nieminen has left Feyenoord to take up a role with AS Monaco, creating a vacancy in the Dutch side’s technical staff. His departure was part of a broader reshuffle following the dismissal of Robin van Persie.

Carlo l'Ami was also linked with a place in the new technical team, but negotiations with the former coach fell through. The club therefore turned its attention to Merz as the preferred candidate.

Merz previously worked as a goalkeeper coach at Union Berlin and at Belgian club Anderlecht, gaining experience in both Germany and Belgium. A year ago, Brøndby appointed him to the same position, where he has spent the last season.

Feyenoord must now determine whether they can persuade Merz to leave Brøndby and join Rotterdam. The club’s next steps will reveal how quickly the transition can be arranged.

After Robin van Persie’s exit, Giovanni van Bronckhorst was installed as his successor, with Sipke Hulshoff acting as his right‑hand man. Van Bronckhorst also retains John de Wolf and Said Bakkati as part of his assistant team.