Excelsior manager Marinus Dijkhuizen is the number one candidate to become Brentford's new head coach and, provided the two parties reach an agreement, will take over for the 2015/16 season.

The Bees have been looking for a new man in charge since February when they announced Mark Warburton would leave the club at the end of the season along with assistant manager David Weir and sporting director Frank McParland.

Owner Matthew Benham replaced McParland with co directors of football Rasmus Ankersen, chairman of FC Midtjylland, and Phil Giles, who worked with the owner at SmartOdds.

And they have identified Dijkhuizen as their number one candidate to take over at Griffin Park.

The 43-year-old has a strong pedigree in Holland having kept Excelsior in the Eredivisie despite being overwhelming favourites to be relegated after winning promotion to the top flight the season before.

Not only did the Kralingers stay up, they also made the Dutch League Cup semi-finals where they were beaten by eventual winners FC Gronigen.

He prefers a 4-3-3 system with wingers who are keen to break down the flanks and provide crosses for the strikers.

In second tier, his sides were very offensive as they finished third before winning promotion via the play-offs, something Brentford have not managed to do in eight attempts.

After winning promotion he had to be more pragmatic and rely on a counter-attacking style of play in the Eredivisie and, while it was not always exciting to watch, it secured results.

Dijkhuizen is a workaholic and is constantly trying to improve himself and his team and prepares for games meticulously.

He especially likes the players who try to get as much out of their career as possible and have the best interests of the team at heart.

Excelsior really was a team who fought for each other and were not afraid to tell each other the truth.

Technically and physically the Dutch side perhaps do not belong in the Eredivisie and they struggled to defend a lead in the closing stages of games, dropping several points in that period.

Transfers will not be something Dijkhuizen will have overall control over, although he did have influence at Excelsior given the limited resources at the club. He scouted players himself and brought other players he already knew to the club.

With thanks to Dutch freelance journalist Tim Niemantsverdriet for the additional information.

We're testing a new site: This content is coming soon