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Dirk Kuyt

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Dirk Kuyt
Personal information
Full name Dirk Kuijt
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[1]
Position(s) Winger, Striker
Team information
Current team
 Liverpool
Number 18
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 11 February, 2009

Dirk Kuijt (pronunciationⓘ), commonly known as Dirk Kuyt,[2] (born 22 July 1980) is a Dutch professional football player who currently plays for English club Liverpool. He is renowned for his work-rate in his primary position as a forward, but now he is more often deployed as a winger for both Liverpool and the Netherlands national team.

Kuyt began his professional career with FC Utrecht in 1998 and quickly became part of their first team. He spent five years at the club and in his final season he won his first senior honour, the Dutch Cup, and was chosen as the season's Dutch Golden Shoe Winner. Following this, he left Utrecht in a €1,000,000 transfer to Feyenoord. He became the club captain in 2005 and was a prolific goalscorer at the Rotterdam club; he was the club's top scorer for three consecutive seasons, the top goalscorer in the 2004–05 Eredivisie season, and the 2005–06 Dutch Footballer of the Year. Kuyt missed only five games over seven seasons from 1999 until 2006 and appeared in 179 consecutive matches between 2001–06.

He left Feyenoord after three years, having scored 71 league goals in 101 appearances, and joined Premier League side Liverpool for £10 million.[3] He made his Premier League debut in late 2006 and immediately became part of the first team squad. He scored in his first UEFA Champions League Final in 2007 but the team lost to AC Milan.

He made his international debut in 2004 and has represented the Netherlands at two major international tournaments, the 2006 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2008.

Biography

Early life

Kuyt is the third of four children. He grew up in the fishing town of Katwijk aan Zee, where his father was a fisherman.[4] Young Dirk was given a choice to choose between football or fishing and ultimately chose football. He later admitted that he would have become a fisherman if not for football.

His football career began when he joined the local amateur team Quick Boys at age 5. He broke into the first team in March 1998, playing the last six games of the season, and catching the eye of Eredivisie team FC Utrecht.[4] Kuyt still regularly visits Katwijk and his old club Quick Boys, who benefited from a £300,000 windfall as a result of the player's move to Liverpool.

FC Utrecht

Kuyt signed professionally for FC Utrecht that summer, aged 18, and immediately established himself in the first team. However he was more often than not played as a winger, as they preferred to play Serbian Igor Gluščević up front.

This continued until the 2002–03 season when Foeke Booy was installed as the club's new manager. Booy played Kuyt as a striker / attacking midfielder (behind the striker) for the entire season, and Kuyt repaid him with 20 league goals. FC Utrecht also reached the Dutch Cup final, where they met Feyenoord. Although they were the underdogs Utrecht comfortably won the cup 4–1, with Kuyt scoring one and being given the man-of-the-match award. At the end of the season Kuyt completed a €1 million move to Feyenoord, where he replaced the out-going Pierre van Hooijdonk.

Feyenoord

At Feyenoord, Kuyt immediately became a fan's favourite with his continued goal scoring success. His first season saw him net another 20 league goals. The opening game of the 2004–05 season marked Kuyt's first ever hat-trick against De Graafschap. He later went on to score three in the 6–3 victory against Den Haag and ended the season as the Eredivisie's top scorer with 29 goals—a career high.

In 2005 Kuyt was handed the Feyenoord club captaincy and went on to have a third successful season with the club, scoring 25 goals in all competitions.

Over the summer of 2006 Kuyt was again linked with moves to many top English clubs, most notably Liverpool and Newcastle United. Rumours started in May with Dirk Kuyt stating "I am happy at Feyenoord but I would like to play in the Premier League."[5] Kuyt completed a move to Liverpool on 18 August for an undisclosed fee.

Kuyt missed only five games over seven seasons from 1999 until 2006, making 233 appearances.[4] Between March 2001 and April 2006 he played 179 consecutive matches.

Liverpool

Upon joining Liverpool, Kuyt stated "I only wanted to leave Feyenoord for a really big club, and that is what Liverpool are. They are a fantastic big club and it will be a real pleasure to play here."[6]

After sitting out the first game Kuyt made his Liverpool debut as a substitute against West Ham on 26 August, 2006. His first start came against PSV in the Champions League and he has been first choice in most games since. He immediately got praises for the new defensive approach by a striker. In his third start for the club on 20 September, 2006 Kuyt scored his first goal against Newcastle United in a Premier League game at Anfield,[7] and followed up with another against Tottenham Hotspur in the next game. He scored his third goal for Liverpool with his father watching the game at Anfield, contributing to Liverpool's 3–1 win over Aston Villa. Two weeks later he bagged a brace, as the only scorer in the Reds' 2–0 victory against Premiership newcomers Reading.

Kuyt won much praise for his early performances, with Daily Mirror stating: "The Dutch striker has the look of a cult hero in the making"[8] and The People reporting that he is "propelling himself towards iconic status."[9] One of the reasons for his early popularity is his post match courtesy to the fans. After each match he walks to every corner of the ground, and applauds the Liverpool supporters.

Kuyt (left) with teammate Xabi Alonso at Liverpool

On 20 January, 2007, Dirk Kuyt opened the scoring against Chelsea after only 4 minutes after a Peter Crouch flick-on. Liverpool went on to defeat the champions 2–0. It was the first time Rafael Benítez had defeated José Mourinho in the Premiership. It was also the first goal scored by Liverpool against a top four club in the league in the 2006–07 season. Kuyt moved his league-goal tally into double figures by scoring the first goal in the game against West Ham on 30, January 2007.

Kuyt played a key part in Liverpool's penalty shoot-out win over Chelsea in the semi-finals of the 2006–07 Champions League. Firstly in extra-time he had a goal disallowed for offside from Xabi Alonso's strike. Kuyt also scored the winning penalty in the shoot-out, and scored a consolation goal in their 2–1 defeat to Milan in the final.

He bagged his first goals of the 2007–2008 season in Liverpools 4–0 victory over Toulouse in their 3rd round qualifying encounter at Anfield on 28 August 2007.

Kuyt scored two penalties against Everton in the Merseyside derby to give Liverpool the edge and win 2-1.

Despite his promising first season and start to his second, Kuyt failed to score in 13 games for Liverpool, before netting against Barnsley in the fifth round of the FA Cup.

However on 19 February 2008, Kuyt scored the first goal in the first leg of the round of 16 of the 2007-08 Champions League against favourites Internazionale. The end result was 2–0 for Liverpool on a dramatic European night with Steven Gerrard scoring the second.

Starting in early 2008, Kuyt began to be employed as a right winger and set up two of Fernando Torres's goals against West Ham in March. He adapted to this new role and soon regained his overall form, playing himself into the starting XI again after putting on various vital team performances. On 2 April 2008, Kuyt scored an equalising goal against Arsenal at the Emirates stadium.

On 22 April 2008, in the first leg of the Champions League all-English semi-final against Chelsea at Anfield, Kuyt scored the opening goal just before half time, making the most of a mistake from Chelsea's Claude Makélélé then putting through the legs of Chelsea keeper Petr Čech. However, Liverpool went on to draw the match 1–1 with John Arne Riise scoring a late own goal. In the second leg at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea advanced to the first all-English Champions League final.

Dirk Kuyt scored a late extra time goal against Standard Liège in the 2008–09 Champions League qualifiers return match to put Liverpool through to the group stages of the competition. In his next game, a 2–1 win in the Premier League against Manchester United, he assisted fellow countryman Ryan Babel's winning goal.

Kuyt has gained a reputation at Liverpool for being a "Big Game Player". By this, they refer to Kuyt's tendency to score goals at vital moments in important games, such as the last minute strike against Standard Liege and an injury time winner against Manchester City on 5 October 2008. He further cemented that reputation by scoring twice in Liverpool's 3–2 comeback win over Wigan Athletic on 18 October 2008, when playing in his natural position of striker rather than right winger, due to the absence of Liverpool's first choice striker Fernando Torres.

International career

Kuyt playing for the Netherlands

When Marco van Basten took over as coach of the Dutch national team he dropped many established players, including strikers Roy Makaay and Patrick Kluivert. Kuyt was to benefit as in September 2004 he made his international debut in van Basten's first game against Liechtenstein. He has been a permanent fixture in the Dutch squad ever since, making the starting line-up for eleven of the Netherlands' twelve 2006 World Cup qualification matches.[10]

2006 World Cup

At the 2006 World Cup, Kuyt found himself relegated to the substitutes bench. Although he made an appearance as a 69th minute replacement in the first game against Serbia and Montenegro, he sat the entire second game out. With the team already qualified for the next round van Basten decided to rest many of his first choice players for the final group game against Argentina,[11] and Kuyt was handed a start in the right wing position.

For the Netherlands' Round of 16 tie against Portugal, Kuyt was given a surprise start ahead of star-striker Ruud van Nistelrooy. However, Kuyt did not have a successful game and the Netherlands eventually lost 1–0 in a game that was more reputable for its record breaking disciplinary record (4 red cards and 16 yellow cards).[12]

Kuyt (left) with Klaas-Jan Huntelaar in a training prior to Euro 2008.

Euro 2008

Kuyt was selected for the Dutch squad for Euro 2008. On 9 June, he played in their opening Group C match, a 3–0 victory over 2006 World Champions Italy, assisting in two goals, his most notable act being the header that provided the link between Giovanni van Bronckhorst's crossfield pass and Wesley Sneijder's goal to make it 2–0 on 31 minutes. On 13 June, Kuyt contributed in his team's second next game of Group C, a 4–1 victory over 2006 World Cup finalists France by opening the scoring with an ninth minute header from a corner,[13][14] taking his tally of international goals to eight.

During Euro 2008, Kuyt was employed as a winger, partnering with Sneijder and Rafael van der Vaart in the midfield due to the team's change of formation from 4-3-3/4-4-2 to 4-2-3-1.

International goals

# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 9 October 2004 Skopje City Stadium, Skopje, FYR Macedonia  North Macedonia 2–1 2–2 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
2. 4 June 2005 De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands  Romania 2–0 2–0 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
3. 8 June 2005 Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland  Finland 0–2 0–4 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
4. 1 March 2006 Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands  Ecuador 1–0 1–0 Friendly
5. 6 September 2006 Philips Stadion, Eindhoven, Netherlands  Belarus 3–0 3–0 UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
6. 22 August 2007 Stade de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland   Switzerland 2–1 2–1 Friendly
7. 24 May 2008 De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands  Ukraine 1–0 3–0 Friendly
8. 13 June 2008 Stade de Suisse, Bern, Switzerland  France 1–0 4–1 UEFA Euro 2008
9. 19 November 2008 Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands  Sweden 3–1 3–1 Friendly

Personal life

Kuyt's wife Gertrude has found favour in the Dutch media for her down-to-earth attitude. She continued to work as a nurse in an old people's home after marrying Kuyt until their daughter, Noelle, was born. Kuyt and his wife now carry out extensive charity work off the pitch. Most notably, he and his wife set up the Dirk Kuyt Foundation to help disadvantaged children in his homeland and the Third World. One of the ways the foundation raises money is by selling DK-branded clothes.[15] The couple now have a son Roan, born 11 April 2007.[16]

Kuyt's father died of cancer on 29 June, 2007.

Statistics

Correct as of 26 February 2009

Club Performance
Club Season England Premiership FA Cup League Cup Europe Others Total
App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals
Liverpool 2008–09 26 8 2 0 0 0 8 2 0 0 34 10
2007–08 32 3 4 1 0 0 12 7 0 0 48 11
2006–07 34 12 1 1 2 0 11 1 0 0 48 14
Total 92 22 7 2 2 0 31 10 0 0 132 34
Club Season Netherlands Eredivisie Dutch Cup - Europe Play-offs Total
App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals
Feyenoord 2005–06 33 22 1 0 - - 2 1 2 2 38 25
2004–05 34 29 3 4 - - 7 3 - - 44 36
2003–04 34 20 2 1 - - 4 1 - - 40 22
Total 101 71 6 5 - - 13 5 2 2 122 83
FC Utrecht 2002–03 34 20 4 2 - - 2 1 - - 40 23
2001–02 34 7 3 3 - - 4 1 - - 41 11
2000–01 32 13 5 3 - - 0 0 - - 37 16
1999–00 32 6 4 4 - - 0 0 - - 36 10
1998–99 28 5 2 1 - - 0 0 - - 30 6
Total 160 51 18 13 - - 6 2 - - 184 66
Overall Total 353 144 31 20 2 0 50 17 2 2 438 183

Career honours

Netherlands FC Utrecht
  • Runner up
    • 2001–02 Dutch Cup
Netherlands Eredivisie
  • Winner Golden Shoe
    • 2003 & 2006
  • Topscorer
    • 2004-05
England Liverpool FC

References

  1. ^ Official Liverpool profile "Official Liverpool FC Player Profile". Liverpool FC. Retrieved 2009-02-18. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  2. ^ See IJ (digraph)
  3. ^ Burt, Jason (2006-08-18). Kuyt flies in to join Liverpool 'dream' team. The Independent. Retrieved on 2009-02-19.
  4. ^ a b c "Detailed stats and profile of Liverpool's Dirk Kuyt". Article on LFChistory.net. Retrieved 29 August 2006.
  5. ^ "Kuyt reveals Liverpool approach". Article on BBC Sport. Retrieved 24 May 2006.
  6. ^ "Kuyt: I can handle 'big club' pressure". Article on FOX Sports. Retrieved 19 August 2006.
  7. ^ "Liverpool 2-0 Newcastle". Match report on BBC Sport. Retrieved 21 September 2006.
  8. ^ "Liverpool 3-0 Tottenham". Match report in The Mirror. Retrieved 26 September 2006.
  9. ^ "Kuyt shows killer touch to win the hearts of Anfield". Match report in The People. Retrieved 26 September 2006.
  10. ^ "2006 World Cup Game Log". Profile on ESPNsoccernet. Retrieved 30 August 2006.
  11. ^ "Holland 0-0 Argentina". Match report on BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 August 2006.
  12. ^ "Portugal 1-0 Holland". Match report on BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 August 2006.
  13. ^ "Netherlands 4-1 France". Match report on BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
  14. ^ Netherlands vs France match report
  15. ^ "He's a star, no doubt". Retrieved 28 August 2008.
  16. ^ http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N155623070416-1303.htm

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Awards
Preceded by Dutch Footballer of the Year
2005 – 2006 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Dutch Golden Shoe Winner
2003 		Succeeded by
Sporting positions
Preceded by Dutch Eredivisie Topscorer
2004 – 2005 		Succeeded by


Template:Persondata

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