Verbeek, 63, had been ill for some time after stepping down as Oman head coach following the AFC Asian Cup in February. A respected coach, Verbeek's involvement in Asian football started in 2000 as Guus Hiddink's assistant when his Dutch compatriot was head coach of Korea Republic. Verbeek was then appointed Korea Republic's U23 head coach in 2005-06, before assuming the national team head coach role in 2006-07.
