Arjan de Zeeuw
Encyclopedia
Adrianus "Arjan" de Zeeuw (born 16 April 1970 in Castricum
, North Holland
) is a retired Dutch
footballer, who played as a centre-back
.
. In 1995, De Zeeuw considered quitting football after he felt Telstar had priced him out of a move to Eredivisie
side Utrecht, but decided to stay with the club for one more year. He was approached by Barnsley
later that year, who signed him for a fee of £250,000 during the 1995–96 season. In December 1995, he scored his first goal in English football in a 2–2 draw against Ipswich Town
. He was a key player in the side that won promotion to the Premier League in the 1996–97 season. The club were relegated the following year, and it appeared that de Zeeuw was set to leave the club in the summer after turning down a new contract, but was later persuaded by new manager John Hendrie
to sign a one-year deal. When his contract expired at the end of the 1998–99 season, he moved to Wigan Athletic
.
At Wigan he soon became a vital team member, proving to be highly dependable at the back, and received the club's Player of the Year award in 2001 and 2002. His contract with Wigan expired in the summer of 2002, and the following season, he moved on a free transfer to Portsmouth
. He was an integral part of the Portsmouth squad that claimed the First Division championship.
He continued to perform to high standards as Portsmouth played well in their debut FA Premier League season, and was recognised by the fans who voted him Portsmouth Player of the Year. He was rewarded with the captaincy for the 2004–05 season, following Teddy Sheringham
's departure to West Ham United
, and led the team to stave off relegation following the departure of manager Harry Redknapp
.
In the summer 2005, after falling out with then-Portsmouth manager Alain Perrin, he returned to Wigan Athletic for the nominal fee of £90,000. de Zeeuw, who is now advanced in years for the life of a footballer, wanted the guarantee of first-team football which Perrin was unwilling to provide. The majority of Portsmouth supporters lamented this decision and loss of their former captain, who had a very consistent season with Wigan at the heart of their defence, helping them to a better-than-expected mid-table finish and even received praise from then Prime Minister Tony Blair
.
De Zeeuw is considered by many to be an excellent example of professionalism in the modern game. He refused to retaliate after El Hadji Diouf
spat
in his face during a match at the Reebok Stadium
in November 2004. His response was to score the winning goal in Portsmouth's 1–0 victory.
In Wigan's second Premiership season, he struggled to get a regular first team place due to a series of injuries and was released by the club on 17 May 2007. Whilst at Wigan he started in the 2006 Football League Cup Final. In a poll to celebrate the centenary of the Professional Footballer's Association fans voted De Zeeuw to be the best player of all time for Wigan Athletic.
In June 2007, it was announced that de Zeeuw had signed a one-year contract with Coventry City
. During pre-season training, a freak accident left the defender sidelined for 6–8 weeks. He made his debut against Bristol City
on 15 September 2007. It was announced towards the end of the 2007–08 season that De Zeeuw would be one of eight first team players whose contracts wouldn't be renewed. His season was hampered by injury and lack of form leading to new manager Chris Coleman
decided he was surplus to requirements.
In 2009, he signed with ADO'20.
Following his retirement in 2009, De Zeeuw began working as an investigative detective, specialising in forensics.
|1992–93||rowspan="4"|Telstar||rowspan="4"|Eerste Divisie
||30||1||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94||31||2||||||||||||
|-
|1994–95||29||1||||||||||||
|-
|1995–96||12||1||||||||||||
|-
|1995–96||rowspan="4"|Barnsley
||rowspan="2"|First Division
||31||1||2||0||colspan="2"|-||33||1
|-
|1996–97||43||2||2||0||4||0||49||2
|-
|1997–98||Premier League||26||0||5||0||2||0||33||0
|-
|1998–99||First Division
||38||4||5||0||6||0||49||4
|-
|1999–2000||rowspan="3"|Wigan Athletic
||rowspan="3"|Second Division
||42||3||3||0||3||0||48||3
|-
|2000–01||46||1||2||0||4||0||52||1
|-
|2001–02||42||2||1||0||1||0||44||2
|-
|2002–03||rowspan="3"|Portsmouth
||First Division
||38||1||colspan="2"|-||1||0||39||1
|-
|2003–04||rowspan="2"|Premier League||36||1||4||0||2||0||42||1
|-
|2004–05||32||3||2||0||3||0||37||3
|-
|2005–06||rowspan="2"|Wigan Athletic
||rowspan="2"|Premier League||31||0||1||0||3||0||35||0
|-
|2006–07||21||0||colspan="2"|-||1||0||22||0
|-
|2007–08||Coventry City
||Championship
||17||0||1||0||1||0||19||0
102||5||||||||||||
443||18||28||0||31||0||502||18
545||23||||||||||||
Portsmouth
Wigan Athletic
Castricum
Castricum is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland.Castricum is a tourist attraction in the province North Holland...
, North Holland
North Holland
North Holland |West Frisian]]: Noard-Holland) is a province situated on the North Sea in the northwest part of the Netherlands. The provincial capital is Haarlem and its largest city is Amsterdam.-Geography:...
) is a retired Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
footballer, who played as a centre-back
Defender (football)
Within the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....
.
Club career
De Zeeuw started his career at Vitesse '22 in the Dutch amateur leagues, and studied for a degree in medical science whilst playing for the club. At the age of 22, after completing his degree, he turned professional and signed for Telstar in the Eerste DivisieEerste Divisie
The Eerste Divisie is the second-highest division of football in the Netherlands. It is linked with the top-level Eredivisie via a promotion/relegation system. It is also known as the Jupiler League due to sponsorship, which is the same name as the top league in Belgium...
. In 1995, De Zeeuw considered quitting football after he felt Telstar had priced him out of a move to Eredivisie
Eredivisie
The Eredivisie is the highest football league in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956 two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is currently ranked the ninth best league in Europe by UEFA....
side Utrecht, but decided to stay with the club for one more year. He was approached by Barnsley
Barnsley F.C.
Barnsley Football Club are a professional English football club based in the town of Barnsley, South Yorkshire. Nicknamed the Tykes, they were founded in 1887 under the name Barnsley St. Peter's...
later that year, who signed him for a fee of £250,000 during the 1995–96 season. In December 1995, he scored his first goal in English football in a 2–2 draw against Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town F.C.
Ipswich Town Football Club are an English professional football team based in Ipswich, Suffolk. As of 2011, they play in the Football League Championship, having last appeared in the Premier League in 2001–02....
. He was a key player in the side that won promotion to the Premier League in the 1996–97 season. The club were relegated the following year, and it appeared that de Zeeuw was set to leave the club in the summer after turning down a new contract, but was later persuaded by new manager John Hendrie
John Hendrie
John Grattan Hendrie is a Scottish former professional association footballer who played on the right wing or in attack....
to sign a one-year deal. When his contract expired at the end of the 1998–99 season, he moved to Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic F.C.
Wigan Athletic Football Club is an English Premier League Association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, having been promoted from the Championship in 2005. Wigan's current spell in the Premier League is the only top flight run in the club's history.They have played at the DW...
.
At Wigan he soon became a vital team member, proving to be highly dependable at the back, and received the club's Player of the Year award in 2001 and 2002. His contract with Wigan expired in the summer of 2002, and the following season, he moved on a free transfer to Portsmouth
Portsmouth F.C.
Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from...
. He was an integral part of the Portsmouth squad that claimed the First Division championship.
He continued to perform to high standards as Portsmouth played well in their debut FA Premier League season, and was recognised by the fans who voted him Portsmouth Player of the Year. He was rewarded with the captaincy for the 2004–05 season, following Teddy Sheringham
Teddy Sheringham
Edward Paul "Teddy" Sheringham MBE is a retired English footballer, and the father of footballer Charlie Sheringham. Sheringham played as a striker, and had a successful career at the club level, winning almost every domestic honour available with his clubs, most notably the Treble with Manchester...
's departure to West Ham United
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
, and led the team to stave off relegation following the departure of manager Harry Redknapp
Harry Redknapp
Henry James "Harry" Redknapp is a former English footballer who has enjoyed a long career in football management starting in 1983 with Bournemouth. He is the current manager of Tottenham Hotspur....
.
In the summer 2005, after falling out with then-Portsmouth manager Alain Perrin, he returned to Wigan Athletic for the nominal fee of £90,000. de Zeeuw, who is now advanced in years for the life of a footballer, wanted the guarantee of first-team football which Perrin was unwilling to provide. The majority of Portsmouth supporters lamented this decision and loss of their former captain, who had a very consistent season with Wigan at the heart of their defence, helping them to a better-than-expected mid-table finish and even received praise from then Prime Minister Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
.
De Zeeuw is considered by many to be an excellent example of professionalism in the modern game. He refused to retaliate after El Hadji Diouf
El Hadji Diouf
El Hadji Ousseynou Diouf is a Senegalese footballer who currently plays for Doncaster Rovers. He can play on both wings as well as in attack. He has also garnered a large amount of notoriety for a series of controversial incidents.-Early career:Diouf started his career in France with...
spat
Spitting
Spitting or expectoration is the act of forcibly ejecting saliva or other substances from the mouth. It is currently considered rude and a social taboo in many parts of the world including the West, while in some other parts of the world it is considered more acceptable...
in his face during a match at the Reebok Stadium
Reebok Stadium
The Reebok Stadium is the home stadium of English Premier League football club Bolton Wanderers, and is located on the Middlebrook Retail Park in Horwich, in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester. It is commonly known as 'The Reebok'...
in November 2004. His response was to score the winning goal in Portsmouth's 1–0 victory.
In Wigan's second Premiership season, he struggled to get a regular first team place due to a series of injuries and was released by the club on 17 May 2007. Whilst at Wigan he started in the 2006 Football League Cup Final. In a poll to celebrate the centenary of the Professional Footballer's Association fans voted De Zeeuw to be the best player of all time for Wigan Athletic.
In June 2007, it was announced that de Zeeuw had signed a one-year contract with Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
. During pre-season training, a freak accident left the defender sidelined for 6–8 weeks. He made his debut against Bristol City
Bristol City F.C.
Bristol City Football Club is one of two football league clubs in Bristol, England . They play at Ashton Gate, located in the south-west of the City...
on 15 September 2007. It was announced towards the end of the 2007–08 season that De Zeeuw would be one of eight first team players whose contracts wouldn't be renewed. His season was hampered by injury and lack of form leading to new manager Chris Coleman
Chris Coleman (footballer)
Christopher "Chris" Coleman is a Welsh football manager and former player. He is currently the manager of Greek Side Larissa....
decided he was surplus to requirements.
In 2009, he signed with ADO'20.
Following his retirement in 2009, De Zeeuw began working as an investigative detective, specialising in forensics.
Career statistics
|-|1992–93||rowspan="4"|Telstar||rowspan="4"|Eerste Divisie
Eerste Divisie
The Eerste Divisie is the second-highest division of football in the Netherlands. It is linked with the top-level Eredivisie via a promotion/relegation system. It is also known as the Jupiler League due to sponsorship, which is the same name as the top league in Belgium...
||30||1||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94||31||2||||||||||||
|-
|1994–95||29||1||||||||||||
|-
|1995–96||12||1||||||||||||
|-
|1995–96||rowspan="4"|Barnsley
Barnsley F.C.
Barnsley Football Club are a professional English football club based in the town of Barnsley, South Yorkshire. Nicknamed the Tykes, they were founded in 1887 under the name Barnsley St. Peter's...
||rowspan="2"|First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||31||1||2||0||colspan="2"|-||33||1
|-
|1996–97||43||2||2||0||4||0||49||2
|-
|1997–98||Premier League||26||0||5||0||2||0||33||0
|-
|1998–99||First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||38||4||5||0||6||0||49||4
|-
|1999–2000||rowspan="3"|Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic F.C.
Wigan Athletic Football Club is an English Premier League Association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, having been promoted from the Championship in 2005. Wigan's current spell in the Premier League is the only top flight run in the club's history.They have played at the DW...
||rowspan="3"|Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
||42||3||3||0||3||0||48||3
|-
|2000–01||46||1||2||0||4||0||52||1
|-
|2001–02||42||2||1||0||1||0||44||2
|-
|2002–03||rowspan="3"|Portsmouth
Portsmouth F.C.
Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from...
||First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||38||1||colspan="2"|-||1||0||39||1
|-
|2003–04||rowspan="2"|Premier League||36||1||4||0||2||0||42||1
|-
|2004–05||32||3||2||0||3||0||37||3
|-
|2005–06||rowspan="2"|Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic F.C.
Wigan Athletic Football Club is an English Premier League Association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, having been promoted from the Championship in 2005. Wigan's current spell in the Premier League is the only top flight run in the club's history.They have played at the DW...
||rowspan="2"|Premier League||31||0||1||0||3||0||35||0
|-
|2006–07||21||0||colspan="2"|-||1||0||22||0
|-
|2007–08||Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
||Championship
Football League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
||17||0||1||0||1||0||19||0
102||5||||||||||||
443||18||28||0||31||0||502||18
545||23||||||||||||
Honours
PortsmouthPortsmouth F.C.
Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from...
- First DivisionFootball League First DivisionThe First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
: 2002-2003 champions
Wigan AthleticWigan Athletic F.C.
Wigan Athletic Football Club is an English Premier League Association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, having been promoted from the Championship in 2005. Wigan's current spell in the Premier League is the only top flight run in the club's history.They have played at the DW...
- Football League CupFootball League CupThe Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
: 2005–06 runner-up
External links
- Arjan de Zeeuw tribute at Wigan Athletic official website
- Arjan de Zeeuw player profile at ccfc.co.uk
- Sunday Times article 31 January, 2010