Grizzled and weathered looking, and never without his trademark cigar, Leo Beenhakker has the haunted look of Peter O’Toole following a night tanking the sauce back in a Soho speakeasy. Affable and sharp-witted he might be, but Beenhakker is no fool; credited with masterminding Poland’s qualification to Euro 2008 the veteran coach is responsible for turning Polish football fortunes right around. Appointed in 2006 following Poland’s dismal showing in the World Cup he was by no means a popular choice – with Polish morale at rock-bottom the last thing that the press wanted was a mercenary Dutch bloke on the wrong side of sixty. Early games appeared to prove the nay-sayers right, and Beenhakker found himself subjected to a right barracking following ropey performances against Finland and Serbia. Amazingly, and with the hyenas gathering, Beenhakker averted the iceberg and embarked on a remarkable sequence of six straight wins. Qualification was in the bag, and Beenhakkers reward was a slew of honours that included the title of Wprost’s Man of the Year, and the Order of Polonia Restituta; should Poland beat the Germans this summer expect Beenhakker to be crowned King. And don’t bet against such an upset. Born in Rotterdam in 1942 Beenhakker has enjoyed an extraordinary career, and miracles figure highly in his CV. He began his coaching life with S.C. Cambuur in 1972, and by 1979 had risen sufficiently to be handed the Ajax job. During his two year spell at the helm he won the Dutch title, and took his team to the semi-finals of the European Cup. Headhunted by Zaragoza he enjoyed three years in Spain, before a brief stint at FC Volendam and seven games in charge of the Dutch national side. He was on the move once more in 1986, this time to Real Madrid where he entered folklore by winning three domestic titles on the bounce and a Spanish Cup. Celebrated for his wanderlust and transient life the early 90s saw him fly through as many revolving doors as Superman. He returned to Ajax, then once more to the Dutch side, and then again to Real Madrid. But it appeared the magic had waned; for the next few years he pottered about in obscurity, managing in Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Turkey. He returned to his homeland in 1996 to oversee Vitesse Arnhem, and the following season jumped ship to Feyenoord, during which time he won the Dutch title. His reputation as a footballing equivalent of a ten dollar prostitute wasn’t helped when he betrayed his employers to take the job of technical director at Ajax, though by 2003 he found himself again earning his shekels in Mexico. It appeared his career was winding down, and in 2005 he went for the ultimate job in the sun; head honcho of Trinidad & Tobago. But those who thought he was just there for a ride were wrong. Under Beenhakker the Soca Warriors qualified for the World Cup, before embarking on an adventure that no person of balanced sanity could have predicted – in their opening game they battled to a credible nil-nil draw against the Swedes, this in spite of being reduced to ten men for half the game. The English were next up, and it took the over-hyped premiership playboys 82 minutes before breaking the deadlock. A two-nil defeat by Paraguay finished off T&T’s hopes, but Beenhakker had done enough to show the world he was no spent granddad. An astute tactician and a man of proven pedigree, the message is clear – underestimate Beenhakker’s Poland at your peril.