Belgium would consider Van Gaal for national team post

The Royal Belgian Football Association's president has admitted that he would consider Louis van Gaal for the national team job if he submits his interest.

Belgium is on the lookout for a new manager after Marc Wilmots was shown the door due to the country's drab Euro 2016 quarter-final exit to Wales this summer.

In its bid for some more tactical sense at the helm, Van Gaal - a Dutchman much-maligned for the sideways passing and generally unadventurous style of play while in charge of Manchester United - could be called upon.

"Van Gaal might be a potential candidate," said KBVB chief Francois De Keersemacker via ESPN FC. "We will see if he puts himself forward as a candidate. If he does then we will evaluate his candidacy."

The 64-year-old gaffer was often a target for criticism during his spell in England, but Belgium's football hierarchy will undoubtedly look to his exploits at international level when potentially surveying his curriculum vitae. Van Gaal guided the Netherlands to the semi-finals of the 2014 World Cup, despite that time marking the beginning of an era where the Oranje squad appears lacking in significant talent.

Conversely, Belgium had arguably the strongest 23 at the European Championship in France, hence Wilmots' sorry departure. Given the vacancy offers the opportunity to coach the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Eden Hazard, and Romelu Lukaku, KBVB technical director Chris van Puyvelde expects to be busy in the coming weeks.

"It's an open process; I expect my mailbox is going to be flooded (with applications)," Van Puyvelde told a press conference. "We want a candidate to have experience and to have already achieved results in international football. He must play modern football.

"He must show tactical acumen and flexibility to adapt because no one game or no opponent are ever the same. He must also deliver a high-performance environment because the players he is working with are used to working at a high level.

"We have a special generation and they need to be allowed to also take decisions of their own."

Belgium will hope to have a decision made by the time its 2018 World Cup qualification campaign begins in Cyprus on Sept. 6.