Throughout the Dutchman's managerial career he has had to deal with plenty of big egos - just ask Edgar Davids, who was ejected from the Netherlands' Euro 96 squad, with Hiddink believing team unity was being fatally disrupted.
Victor Meijers, a Dutchman who is the only foreign global partner in DeHeng Law Offices, one of China's big law firms, says that he gets several inquiries a month from struggling European firms looking for a Chinese white knight.