Wesley Sneijder

Wesley Sneijder
Sneijder crop.jpg
Personal information
Full name Wesley Benjamin Sneijder[1]
Date of birth 9 June 1984 (1984-06-09) (age 26)
Place of birth Utrecht, Netherlands
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)[1]
Playing position Attacking midfielder
Club information
Current club Internazionale
Number 10
Youth career
1991–2002 Ajax
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
2002–2007 Ajax 127 (44)
2007–2009 Real Madrid 52 (11)
2009– Internazionale 26 (4)
National team‡
2003– Netherlands 68 (19)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 16 May 2010.

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 11 July 2010

Wesley Benjamin Sneijder (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈʋɛsli ˈsnɛidər]  ( listen)) (born 9 June 1984) is a Dutch footballer playing as attacking midfielder for Internazionale. In 2004, Sneijder was awarded the Johan Cruijff Award for Young Player of the Year in the Netherlands.

A product of the Ajax Academy, he previously played for AFC Ajax and Real Madrid, before signing for Internazionale in 2009. In his first season at the Italian club, Sneijder won the European Treble, consisting of Serie A, Coppa Italia and UEFA Champions League.

Sneijder previously represented various Youth squads for the Netherlands. He is now a regular player for the Dutch national team, having made his debut in April 2003 at the age of 18, and having represented his country at the 2006 World Cup and at two European Championships (2004 and 2008). He represented the Netherlands at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, where he won the Bronze Boot and the Silver Ball.

Contents

Early life

Wesley Sneijder was born on 9 June 1984 in Utrecht into a football family: his father was a player, his older brother Jeffrey played for Stormvogels Telstar, and his younger brother Rodney plays for the youth academy of AFC Ajax.[2]

Club career

Ajax

Although Sneijder was not born in Amsterdam, he started his career in AFC Ajax's famous youth academy. Following his older brother's footsteps, he signed for Ajax as a seventeen-year-old, initially on trial but impressed enough to be signed on a permanent basis. He first made the bench as an unused substitute for Ajax in a 2–0 win at SBV Excelsior on 22 December 2002 when manager Ronald Koeman, troubled by an injury-filled squad, called him up, advised by Danny Blind, the then-coach of the Ajax youth squad. He then made his official Ajax debut against Willem II after the winter break on 2 February 2003 in a 6–0 win. He rapidly established himself in the role of midfield general and occasional left winger. With short stature, he is quick, strong on the ball, and his passing range is enhanced by his ambidexterity.[3][4]

Sneijder playing for Ajax

Due to his impeccable placement and confirmed ability to score from free kicks, Sneijder earned the reputation as a dead-ball specialist and has become the first choice short-range free kick taker in all the major teams in which he has played.[3] On 12 August 2007, Ajax agreed to sell Sneijder to Real Madrid for €27 million, according to the club's web-site, making him the second most expensive Dutch football player.

Real Madrid

Sneijder was the second of three Dutchmen to sign for Real Madrid for the 2007 season, joining Royston Drenthe and later Arjen Robben. He also was given the number 23, which was worn by David Beckham for four full seasons at Real. In his first La Liga match for Real, he scored the winner in the Madrid derby against Atlético Madrid. On the second matchday, he scored two goals against Villarreal CF, one of them on a direct free-kick. Sneijder capped a fine first season in Spain by hitting a stunning free kick in the last game of the season against Levante UD at the Bernabéu, taking his goal tally to nine in the La Liga season, a season which also saw Real retain their title.

Sneijder with Ajax in 2006.

On 3 August 2008, Sneijder was stretchered off in the pre-season friendly at Arsenal with a suspected cruciate ligament injury after a collision with Abou Diaby. Sneijder had an MRI which confirmed the extent of the injury to be not as bad as first feared. It was expected that he would be out for at least three months.[5] However, he managed to recover in time and was included in the starting eleven for the Champions League clash against Juventus in Turin. On 2 September 2008, AS reported that after Robinho's departure to Manchester City for €42 million, Sneijder would now be Real Madrid's new number 10.[6] One day later, Real Madrid confirmed on their web site Sneijder's new number, 10. His previous number, 23, was taken over by his fellow Dutchman Rafael van der Vaart,[7] whose preferred number is 23.

Dutch magazine Voetbal International conducted a poll to decide who was the best Dutch free-kick taker. Sneijder received an overwhelming 70% of the votes while Arsenal's Robin van Persie came second with 21% and formerly-Ajax and current AC Milan striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar was third with 3% of the vote.[8]

Internazionale

On 27 August 2009, Sneijder was bought by Internazionale from Real Madrid for a reported fee of €15 million.[9][10] He was given the number 10 shirt and made his debut a day after he signed the contract. He made an immediate impact by being on the winning side in the Milan derby (4–0) against AC Milan. On 3 October 2009 he scored his first, decisive goal, in the 92nd minute against Udinese in a 2–1 win, after a brilliant match.[11][12] His second goal was scored on 24 October 2009 against Catania, directly from free kick, and he scored his first UEFA Champions League goal for Inter in a dramatic 2-1 win against Dynamo Kiev in the 89th minute. His next goal was also scored off a hard-swerving free kick in a Coppa Italia game against Livorno. On 9 January 2010 he scored two stunning free kicks against Siena in the game which Inter won 4–3, however on 24 January he received a straight red card in the Milan derby. On April 6 Sneijder scored a free kick against CSKA Moscow in the UEFA Champions League quarter-final in the sixth minute, making it 2–0 on aggregate to Inter Milan. On 20 April 2010 he scored Inter's equalising goal during their UEFA Champions League 1st Leg Semi-Final against Barcelona. He leveled the game by firing in right-footed from a Diego Milito pass. Inter went on to win the game 3–1. Sneijder was given the nickname 'The Sniper' by the Media for his ability to deliver perfect passes and score from amazing distances.[13]

On 22 May 2010, Inter won the 2010 Champions League Final against Bayern Munich by 2–0. Both goals were scored by Diego Milito, with Sneijder supplying the assist for the first goal.[14]

He was voted as the best player of the year 2009-2010 by Goal.com.[15]

Sneijder started the 2010/2011 season brightly with Inter in pre-season with a sublime curling goal against Juventus in the Tim Cup, where he also won player of the tournament, with Inter winning the Tim Cup. He also was decicive in Inter's Italian Cup win against Roma, where he had perfect passes, and an assist for Eto's third and decicive goal. On 24th, August, 2010, Sneijder claimed he would like to end his career at Inter as he has grown fond of his team-mates, the city and his life there. On August 26 the Wesley was named best midfielder and the best player of the UEFA Champions league 2009-10 season.

International career

Sneijder (right) with Arjen Robben training for the Netherlands.

Sneijder debuted with the Netherlands under-21 side against the Czech Republic on 28 March 2003. His first game with the senior Dutch side was against Portugal on 30 April that same year, when he became the eighth youngest player to play for the Netherlands in the first team's history.

Euro 2004

Sneijder reached the UEFA Euro 2004 semi-finals with the Netherlands. He began the competition mainly on the bench, and was subbed into two group stage matches. He had also contributed two goals in the qualifying tournament.

2006 World Cup

Sneijder (left) with Rafael van der Vaart

Sneijder started all four games for the Netherlands at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. He received one of the record 16 yellow cards doled out during the infamous Round of 16 clash with Portugal (titled the "Battle of Nuremberg"); Portugal went on to win 1–0.

Euro 2008

In the build-up to UEFA Euro 2008, Sneijder scored a free kick in a friendly against Wales on 31 May, making it his second strike from a direct free kick in a row. The game ended 2–0 with a goal from fellow-Real Madrid teammate Arjen Robben.

Sneijder marked his 24th birthday in style by scoring one of the goals of the tournament; the second goal in the 31st minute of the Euro 2008 match against the World Cup champion, Italy. Following Giovanni van Bronckhorst's goal-line clearance and subsequent run into the Italian half, Sneijder received a headed ball from Dirk Kuyt and volleyed it with an acrobatic strike past Gianluigi Buffon. This brought the score to 2–0 after Ruud van Nistelrooy's opener five minutes prior. The match finished with a 3–0 victory to the Dutch after a third goal was scored by van Bronkhorst after another run by him, following a crucial save from Edwin van der Sar. Sneijder's goal contributed to the Netherlands' first victory over Italy in 30 years, which was the biggest defeat Italy had suffered since Sweden beat them by the same margin in 1983. Many fans and pundits agreed that this goal was one of the best of the tournament. On 13 June, he scored another goal for the Oranje in the Euro 2008 group stage match against France: in the 92nd minute, from outside the box, Sneijder struck the ball into the corner of the net, bouncing off the crossbar on its way in. The match finished 4–1 for the Netherlands. Although the Dutch lost to the Russians in the quarter-final, Sneijder was named in the Team of the Tournament for his strong performances.

2010 World Cup

Sneijder the day before the Dutch team's departure to South Africa

Sneijder was in the starting line-up for their first match in the competition, a 2–0 victory over Denmark.[16] Sneijder scored the winning goal in a 1–0 victory over Japan.[17] In the first two matches of the group stage at the FIFA World Cup he was selected as the man of the match in both of them.[18][19] In the Netherlands' round of 16 match against Slovakia, Sneijder scored in a 2–1 victory.[20] He also provided what was at first thought to be an assist for the first goal against Brazil in the quarter finals, but was later credited with the goal.[21] He then scored a header direct from a corner and consigned Brazil to a 2–1 defeat, bringing his goal total in the tournament to four. Sneijder was again named man of the match on FIFA's website.[22]

In the semi final against Uruguay, Sneijder scored in the 70th minute, taking his total in the competition so far to five, raising him to first place in terms of goals scored, along with David Villa.[23] The Netherlands won the match 3–2 and progressed to the final. Sneijder was yet again named on FIFA's website as the Budweiser man of the match according to the public online vote.[24] In the world cup final, the Dutch team lost to Spain, conceding the only goal of the match only after 116 minutes, when his fellow teammate Johnny Heitinga received a red card. He was otorged the gold ball with Forlan and Villa for scoring 5 goals

International goals

Wesley Sneijder: International goals[25]
Goal Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 2003-10-11 Philips Stadion, Eindhoven, Netherlands  Moldova 2–0 5–0 Euro 2004 qualifying
2 2003-11-19 Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands  Scotland 1–0 6–0 Euro 2004 qualifying playoffs
3 2004-08-18 Råsunda Stadium, Stockholm, Sweden  Sweden 1–1 2–2 Friendly match
4 2005-06-08 Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands  Finland 1–1 3–1 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
5 2005-08-17 Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, Barcelona, Spain  Andorra 3-0 3-0 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
6 2007-03-24 Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands  Russia 2–0 4–1 Friendly match
7 2007-09-08 Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands  Bulgaria 1–0 2–0 Euro 2008 Qualification
8 2007-10-17 Philips Stadion, Eindhoven, Netherlands  Slovenia 1–0 2–0 Euro 2008 Qualification
9 2008-05-01 De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands  Wales 2–0 2–0 Friendly match
10 2008-06-09 Stade de Suisse, Wankdorf, Berne, Switzerland  Italy 2–0 3–0 UEFA Euro 2008
11 2008-06-13 Stade de Suisse, Wankdorf, Berne, Switzerland  France 4–1 4–1 UEFA Euro 2008
12 2009-05-09 Grolsch Veste, Enschede, Netherlands  Japan 2–0 3–0 Friendly match
13 2010-06-01 De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands  Ghana 3–1 4–1 Friendly match
14 2010-06-05 Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands  Hungary 2–1 6–1 Friendly match
15 2010-06-19 Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban, South Africa  Japan 1–0 1–0 2010 FIFA World Cup
16 2010-06-28 Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban, South Africa  Slovakia 2–0 2–1 2010 FIFA World Cup
17 2010-07-02 Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth, South Africa  Brazil 1–1 2–1 2010 FIFA World Cup
18 2010-07-02 Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth, South Africa  Brazil 2–1 2–1 2010 FIFA World Cup
19 2010-07-06 Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town, South Africa  Uruguay 2–1 3–2 2010 FIFA World Cup

Career statistics

Club performance League Cup Continental Total
Season Club League Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Netherlands League KNVB Cup Europe Total
2002–03 Ajax Eredivisie 17 4 3 1 3 0 23 5
2003–04 30 9 1 0 7 1 38 10
2004–05 30 7 4 2 7 0 41 9
2005–06 19 6 3 2 7 4 29 12
2006–07 31 18 4 1 9 1 43 20
Spain League Copa del Rey Europe Total
2007–08 Real Madrid La Liga 30 9 2 0 5 0 37 9
2008–09 22 2 1 0 4 0 27 2
Italy League Coppa Italia Europe Total
2009–10 Internazionale Serie A 26 4 4 1 11 3 41 8
Total Netherlands 127 44 15 6 33 6 174 56
Spain 52 11 3 0 9 0 64 11
Italy 22 4 3 1 9 3 34 8
Career total 201 59 21 7 51 9 272 75

Statistics correct as of matches played 14 April 2010

Honours

Club

Sneijder (left) and John Heitinga were teammates at Ajax.
Ajax
  • Eredivisie (1): 2003–04
  • KNVB Cup (2): 2005-06, 2006-07
  • Johan Cruijff-schaal (3): 2002, 2005, 2006
Real Madrid
Internazionale
Sneijder at Schiphol departing for the World Cup

Individual

Personal life

Sneijder married Yolanthe Cabau van Kasbergen in 2010.

Sneijder married Ramona Streekstra on 18 June 2005. They have one son, Jessey, born 4 September 2006, to whom he dedicated a tattoo on his left arm. The couple divorced on 21 January 2009.[29]

Sneijder has two brothers, Jeffrey Sneijder, a former footballer and Rodney who plays for Jong Ajax. In May 2008, it was reported that Sneijder had prevented his younger brother Rodney from a summer transfer to his club at the time, Real Madrid. Sneijder said, "Real Madrid wanted him and Rodney was very happy about that. But when I heard, I stopped the discussions. I am not in favour of juniors increasingly going to top clubs. I've told him that he first must make a break through at Ajax."[30][31]

In August 2009 he began dating Dutch actress and presenter Yolanthe Cabau van Kasbergen. They became engaged in December 2009 and married on 17 July 2010.[32] By her inspiration, Sneijder became Catholic and was baptized in Milan.[33]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "The story of Wesley Sneijder". Wesley Sneijder official website. http://www.sneijderofficial.com/en/fact_file.asp. Retrieved 13 November 2009. 
  2. ↑ "Rodney Sneijder" (in German). transfermarkt. http://www.transfermarkt.de/de/rodney-sneijder/profil/spieler_93405.html. Retrieved 19 June 2010. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Wesley Sneijder". 123football.com. 1984-06-09. http://www.123football.com/players/s/wesley-sneijder/index.htm. Retrieved 2010-06-10. 
  4. ↑ Kevin McCarra (2008-06-11). "Two-footed Sneijder the fulcrum of Holland's new counter-attacking style". Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2008/jun/11/euro2008.euro2008groupc1. Retrieved 2010-06-10. 
  5. ↑ "Sneijder avoids going under the knife". Realmadrid.com. 2008-08-04. http://www.realmadrid.com/cs/Satellite/en/1202740418878/noticia/Noticia/Great_news.htm. Retrieved 2008-08-05. 
  6. ↑ "El vestuario no le aceptaba y el dorsal 10 lo llevará Sneijder". as.com. 2008-09-01. http://www.as.com/futbol/articulo/vestuario-le-aceptaba-dorsal-llevara/dasftbpri/20080902dasdaiftb_23/Tes. Retrieved 2008-09-02. 
  7. ↑ "Sneijder switches to‘10’ and Van der Vaart takes over ‘23’". realmadrid.com. 2008-09-03. http://www.realmadrid.com/cs/Satellite/en/1202741649574/noticia/Noticia/Official_shirt_numbers_2008-09-03.htm. Retrieved 2008-09-03. 
  8. ↑ "Sharpshooter Sneijder". Realmadrid.com. 2008-10-13. http://www.realmadrid.com/cs/Satellite/en/News/1193040487675/1202743981130/noticia/Noticia/Sharpshooter_Sneijder.htm. Retrieved 2010-04-27. 
  9. ↑ Transfer Zone (2009-08-26). "Inter Sign Real Madrid's Wesley Sneijder – Report". Goal.com. http://www.goal.com/en/news/11/transfer-zone/2009/08/26/1463029/inter-sign-real-madrids-wesley-sneijder-report. Retrieved 2010-06-10. 
  10. ↑ "Wesley Sneijder joining Inter Milan from Real Madrid". Telegraph.co.uk. 2009-08-27. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/european/6098782/Wesley-Sneijder-joining-Inter-Milan-from-Real-Madrid.html. Retrieved 2010-06-10. 
  11. ↑ "Wesley Sneijder signs four-year contract.". FC Internazionale Milano. 2009-08-28. http://www.inter.it/aas/news/reader?N=32049&L=en. Retrieved 2009-08-28. 
  12. ↑ "Serie A: Inter sink Milan 4–0 in derby destruction". Soccernet.espn.go.com. 2009-08-29. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=672009&sec=europe&cc=5739. Retrieved 2010-06-10. 
  13. ↑ "Joy for Jose and Inter". Skysports.com. http://www.skysports.com/football/match_report/0,19764,11065_3267793,00.html. Retrieved 2010-06-10. 
  14. ↑ "Bayern Munich 0 – 2 Internazionale". ESPN Soccernet. 2010-05-22. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=292088&cc=5739. Retrieved 2010-05-24. 
  15. ↑ http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/3276/serie-a/2010/08/12/2067852/inter-and-netherlands-star-wesley-sneijder-proud-to-win
  16. ↑ "Netherlands-Denmark". FIFA.com. 2010-06-14. http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/round=249722/match=300061478/report.html. Retrieved 2010-06-16. 
  17. ↑ "Netherlands 13-12 Japan (sub header)". CNN. June 21, 2010. http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/football/06/19/netherlands.japan.group.e/index.html. Retrieved July 2, 2010. 
  18. ↑ "Dutch scorer Sneijder names Man of the Match". World News. http://article.wn.com/view/2010/06/19/Dutch_scorer_Sneijder_named_Man_of_the_Match. Retrieved July 2, 2010. 
  19. ↑ "Wesley Sneijder". UEFA. http://www.uefa.com/teamsandplayers/players/player=57132/profile/index.html. Retrieved July 2, 2010. 
  20. ↑ "The Dutch Risk It All". Vanity Fair. July 2, 2010. http://www.vanityfair.com/online/fairplay/2010/07/the-dutch-risk-it-all.html. Retrieved July 2, 2010. 
  21. ↑ "Sneijder credited with first goal in Dutch quarter-final victory". FIFA. July 3, 2010. http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/newsid=1266860/index.html. Retrieved July 8, 2010. 
  22. ↑ "Dutch fightback buries Brazil". FIFA.com. July 2, 2010. http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/round=249718/match=300061507/index.html. Retrieved July 2, 2010. 
  23. ↑ "Uruguay 2-3 Netherlands". BBC Sport. 2010-07-06. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/world_cup_2010/matches/match_61/default.stm. Retrieved 2010-07-07. 
  24. ↑ "Oranje edge five-goal thriller". Fifa. July 6, 2010. http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/round=249719/match=300061512/index.html. Retrieved July 6, 2010. 
  25. ↑ "Gespeelde wedstrijden". KNVB. http://knvb.nl/oranje/selectie/spelers/detail/gesp-wedstr?player_id=20030901143325607. Retrieved 2007-05-16. 
  26. ↑ "Spain dominate Team of the Tournament". UEFA.com. 2008-06-30. http://en.euro2008.uefa.com/news/kind=1/newsid=729372.html#spain+dominate+team+tournament. Retrieved 2008-06-30. 
  27. ↑ "Carslberg Goal of the Day". UEFA.com. http://en.gotd.euro2008.uefa.com/cgd/main/home.aspx. Retrieved 2008-07-03. 
  28. ↑ "Goal.com 50 of 2009-10". Goal.com. http://www.goal.com/en/news/2466/top-50. 
  29. ↑ WAG of the Day. "WAG No. 341: Yolanthe Cabau van Kasbergen". The Spoiler. http://www.thespoiler.co.uk/index.php/2009/05/28/wag-no-341-yolanthe-cabau-van-kasbergen. Retrieved 2010-04-27. 
  30. ↑ Rodney Sneijder - Ajaxinside.nl
  31. ↑ "Sneijder blocked Real Madrid move for kid brother". http://www.tribalfootball.com/article.php?id=91768. Retrieved 20 May 2008. 
  32. ↑ "Dutch World Cup star Wesley Sneijder makes TV presenter Yolanthe a footballer's wife". The Daily Mail. July 18, 2010. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1295552/Wesley-Sneijder-makes-TV-presenter-Yolanthe-footballers-wife.html. Retrieved July 18, 2010. 
  33. ↑ "Wesley Sneijder został katolikiem". Fronda.pl. http://www.fronda.pl/news/czytaj/wesley_sneijder_zostal_katolikiem. Retrieved 24 June 2010. 

External links

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