Robin van Persie’s coaching staff is getting cleaned out. Less than a week after the former Arsenal and Manchester United striker was fired as Feyenoord head coach, the club has parted ways with his two top assistants — René Hake and Brian Pinas — according to an official statement released Tuesday.
Feyenoord finished the Eredivisie season a staggering 19 points behind champions PSV Eindhoven. That gap alone was enough to seal Van Persie’s fate. Now his lieutenants are paying the price too. The club confirmed that Giovanni van Bronckhorst, the former Rangers and Barcelona defender, will take over as head coach for the upcoming campaign.
From Old Trafford to Rotterdam — and Out Again
Hake’s career path has been a strange one. He arrived at Manchester United as Erik ten Hag’s assistant in 2024, part of a coaching staff that briefly tasted domestic cup glory. When Ten Hag was sacked early in the 2024/25 season after a poor start, Hake lingered at Old Trafford for a short while before being swept out in the overhaul that brought Ruben Amorim to Manchester.
Amorim’s tenure at United lasted just 14 months. In that same span, Hake joined Van Persie at Feyenoord in 2025, hoping to help the legendary Dutch striker revive the club’s fortunes. The move made sense on paper: two former United figures, both steeped in the Eredivisie, trying to challenge PSV’s dominance. But reality hit hard. Feyenoord never seriously threatened for the title, and the 19-point chasm at the end said everything about how far the team had fallen.
“Feyenoord has parted ways with René Hake and Brian Pinas,” the club’s statement read. “The duo were part of the coaching staff of Feyenoord’s first team last season, but will leave the club as well, following the departure of head coach Robin van Persie.”
A Bitter Irony for United Fans
While Hake’s exit in Rotterdam is small news in the grand scheme of European football, it lands with a particular sting for Manchester United supporters. Ten Hag’s tenure was defined by flashes of cup success — two domestic trophies — but an inability to build sustained league form. Now both Ten Hag and his former assistant have been dismissed from their next jobs within months of each other.
Meanwhile, United’s search for stability continues. Michael Carrick, the former midfielder who took over as interim head coach and impressed enough to earn the permanent role, now faces a massive summer rebuild. INEOS — United’s new owners — are tasked with arming Carrick for a Champions League return and a deep run in domestic competitions. Whether they get it right remains the question that has haunted the club since Sir Alex Ferguson left.
As for Hake and Pinas, they’re now free agents in a coaching market that rarely looks kindly on assistants tied to a 19-point failure.
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