Siem de Jong
Encyclopedia
Siem de Jong (ˈsim də ˈjɔŋ) (born 28 January 1989) is a Dutch
football midfielder
who plays for Ajax.
De Jong was born in Aigle
, Switzerland
to Dutch parents and moved back to the Netherlands at age six. His younger brother Luuk
plays for FC Twente
as well as the Netherlands U-21
's.
amateur club DZC'68 and was scouted by De Graafschap
, when he was 12. He grew up in Doetinchem
and graduated from the same school (het Rietveld Lyceum) as Guus Hiddink
, Paul Bosvelt
and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, which grants him immediate university access (he has considered studying economics). He played with De Graafschap
until 2005, when he was picked up by the Ajax youth academy.
. His Eredivisie
debut was also as a substitute, away to Sparta Rotterdam
, where he scored an injury-time equaliser. In 2007–08, he was one of the youngest players and the only player under age 20 to play more than 20 games. On 16 January, just before turning nineteen, he extended his contract with Ajax to June 2013. He picked up an injury against Willem II, missing two months. This made him miss all the games from March 16 onward (the very important games PSV-Ajax, FC Twente-Ajax and SC Heerenveen-Ajax). He recovered from this injury in early April, returning fit for the match against De Graafschap
. He did not start that game, but he was substituted in the 81st minute for Edgar Davids
.
During the beginning of the 2009–10, de Jong was often used as an impact substitute and only started in Europa League games. He eventually earned his place in the starting eleven. In January, he scored the winner in the last few minutes of extra time to send Ajax through to the semifinals of the Dutch Cup. On 21 February, he scored a brace against Vitesse Arnhem
in a 4–0 win to keep Ajax's push for a Champions League spot alive.
On May 15, 2011, de Jong played in the title-decider game against FC Twente
and helped Ajax win their first (and 30th overall) Eredivisie title since 2004, by scoring two goals, sealing the 3-1 victory.
(0–2 win) and has six caps. He played three games there but the Netherlands did not qualify for the UEFA U-19 Championship. In the next qualifying campaign he was more successful, playing three games and scoring in two of them. He scored in the qualifying campaign for the 2008 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship
once in his debut game in 83rd minute against Georgia
(2–0 win). He started the second game but did not score. In the final game, against Norway
, he scored in the 15th minute (3–1 loss).
by Foppe de Haan
for the game against Macedonia. Because of his injury in March, he missed the qualifying game against Estonia
(3–0 win) and was replaced by Jonathan de Guzman
. After recovering from his injury in April, de Haan recalled him but de Jong failed to make the final squad for the Olympics. De Jong played three more games for the under-21 team, but they failed to qualify for the 2009 European Championships
.
De Jong was recalled for the 2011 UEFA U21 Championship qualifiers
and scored the opening goal against Liechtenstein in a 3–0 win.
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...
football midfielder
Midfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
who plays for Ajax.
De Jong was born in Aigle
Aigle
Aigle is the capital of the district of Aigle in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. The town has a population of 8,100 people.The name of this municipality in French means eagle.-Geography:...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
to Dutch parents and moved back to the Netherlands at age six. His younger brother Luuk
Luuk de Jong
Luuk de Jong is a Dutch footballer, currently playing for Eredivisie side FC Twente.-Early life:Born in Aigle, Switzerland, a son of two volleyball players who played professionally in that country. Luuk de Jong moved to the Netherlands when he was 4-years old. Luuk does not remember anything of...
plays for FC Twente
FC Twente
FC Twente is a Dutch professional football club from the city of Enschede, playing in the Eredivisie. The club was formed in 1965 by the merger of 1926 Eredivisie Champions, Sportclub Enschede and Enschedese Boys...
as well as the Netherlands U-21
Netherlands national under-21 football team
The Netherlands national under-21 football team is the national under-21 team of the Netherlands and is controlled by the Royal Dutch Football Association. The team competes in the European Under-21 Championship, held every two years....
's.
Early career
Siem de Jong started his football career at the DoetinchemDoetinchem
Doetinchem is a city and municipality in the east of the Netherlands. It is situated along the Oude IJssel river in a part of the province of Gelderland called the Achterhoek . The municipality has 56,700 inhabitants and has an area of 79.66 km²...
amateur club DZC'68 and was scouted by De Graafschap
De Graafschap
De Graafschap is a professional football club from Doetinchem, Netherlands. It was formed on 1 February 1954 and they play their home games at the "De Vijverberg" stadium. Their current home ground stands on where the old pitch used to be located and was opened on 12 August 2000...
, when he was 12. He grew up in Doetinchem
Doetinchem
Doetinchem is a city and municipality in the east of the Netherlands. It is situated along the Oude IJssel river in a part of the province of Gelderland called the Achterhoek . The municipality has 56,700 inhabitants and has an area of 79.66 km²...
and graduated from the same school (het Rietveld Lyceum) as Guus Hiddink
Guus Hiddink
Guus Hiddink is a Dutch football manager and former player. He was the most recently manager of the Turkish national football team. He is considered to be one of the best managers of his generation and was the best-paid coach in international football in 2009...
, Paul Bosvelt
Paul Bosvelt
Paul Bosvelt is a retired Dutch footballer. He played for Go Ahead Eagles and Twente before making his big move to Feyenoord in 1997.-Club career:...
and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, which grants him immediate university access (he has considered studying economics). He played with De Graafschap
De Graafschap
De Graafschap is a professional football club from Doetinchem, Netherlands. It was formed on 1 February 1954 and they play their home games at the "De Vijverberg" stadium. Their current home ground stands on where the old pitch used to be located and was opened on 12 August 2000...
until 2005, when he was picked up by the Ajax youth academy.
Ajax
De Jong is one of several players in the current first team to come through the youth system. He made his first team debut, coming on as a substitute, on 26 September 2007 against Kozakken BoysKozakken Boys
Kozakken Boys is a football club from Werkendam in the Netherlands. The club currently plays in the Saturday Hoofdklasse B, the highest tier of amateur football in the Netherlands.- Current squad :-External links:*...
. His 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....
debut was also as a substitute, away to Sparta Rotterdam
Sparta Rotterdam
Sparta Rotterdam is the oldest professional football team in the Netherlands, established on April 1, 1888. Sparta is one of three professional football clubs from Rotterdam, the others being Excelsior and Feyenoord , the latter playing in the Eredivisie.-History:Sparta was first founded in 1887....
, where he scored an injury-time equaliser. In 2007–08, he was one of the youngest players and the only player under age 20 to play more than 20 games. On 16 January, just before turning nineteen, he extended his contract with Ajax to June 2013. He picked up an injury against Willem II, missing two months. This made him miss all the games from March 16 onward (the very important games PSV-Ajax, FC Twente-Ajax and SC Heerenveen-Ajax). He recovered from this injury in early April, returning fit for the match against De Graafschap
De Graafschap
De Graafschap is a professional football club from Doetinchem, Netherlands. It was formed on 1 February 1954 and they play their home games at the "De Vijverberg" stadium. Their current home ground stands on where the old pitch used to be located and was opened on 12 August 2000...
. He did not start that game, but he was substituted in the 81st minute for Edgar Davids
Edgar Davids
Edgar Steven Davids is a retired Dutch footballer and current member of the supervisory board of Ajax. After beginning his career with the Amsterdam club, he subsequently played in Italy for Milan and Juventus before a loan spell with Barcelona. He went on to play for Internazionale and Tottenham...
.
During the beginning of the 2009–10, de Jong was often used as an impact substitute and only started in Europa League games. He eventually earned his place in the starting eleven. In January, he scored the winner in the last few minutes of extra time to send Ajax through to the semifinals of the Dutch Cup. On 21 February, he scored a brace against Vitesse Arnhem
Vitesse Arnhem
Stichting Betaald Voetbal Vitesse is a Dutch football club from Arnhem, which was founded on 14 May 1892. Vitesse has had considerable success in the Eredivisie, and featured in the UEFA Cup competition, but has never been considered a close competitor of the top three clubs of Netherlands...
in a 4–0 win to keep Ajax's push for a Champions League spot alive.
On May 15, 2011, de Jong played in the title-decider game against FC Twente
FC Twente
FC Twente is a Dutch professional football club from the city of Enschede, playing in the Eredivisie. The club was formed in 1965 by the merger of 1926 Eredivisie Champions, Sportclub Enschede and Enschedese Boys...
and helped Ajax win their first (and 30th overall) Eredivisie title since 2004, by scoring two goals, sealing the 3-1 victory.
Netherlands Under 19
De Jong made his international debut at the U19 level in May 2007 against Czech RepublicCzech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
(0–2 win) and has six caps. He played three games there but the Netherlands did not qualify for the UEFA U-19 Championship. In the next qualifying campaign he was more successful, playing three games and scoring in two of them. He scored in the qualifying campaign for the 2008 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship
UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship
The European Under 19 Football Championship is an annual football competition organised by the sport's European governing body, UEFA. The competition has been held since 1948. It was originally called the FIFA junior tournament, until it was taken over by UEFA in 1955...
once in his debut game in 83rd minute against Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
(2–0 win). He started the second game but did not score. In the final game, against Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, he scored in the 15th minute (3–1 loss).
Netherlands Under 21
On 12 November 2007, de Jong was called up to the Netherlands U21Netherlands national under-21 football team
The Netherlands national under-21 football team is the national under-21 team of the Netherlands and is controlled by the Royal Dutch Football Association. The team competes in the European Under-21 Championship, held every two years....
by Foppe de Haan
Foppe de Haan
Foppe de Haan OON is a Dutch football coach. He is known for his long association with Frisian club SC Heerenveen. De Haan is currently manager of the Tuvalu national football team.-Career:...
for the game against Macedonia. Because of his injury in March, he missed the qualifying game against Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
(3–0 win) and was replaced by Jonathan de Guzman
Jonathan de Guzmán
Jonathan Alexander de Guzmán is a Canadian-born footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder and is currently playing for Villarreal CF....
. After recovering from his injury in April, de Haan recalled him but de Jong failed to make the final squad for the Olympics. De Jong played three more games for the under-21 team, but they failed to qualify for the 2009 European Championships
2009 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship
The 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship began on 15 June 2009, and was the 17th UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship. This was the first tournament after the competition reverted to a two-year format, following the single-year 2006-07 competition, which allowed the change to...
.
De Jong was recalled for the 2011 UEFA U21 Championship qualifiers
2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification
The 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship started with a qualifying competition which began on 27 March 2009 and finished on 13 October 2010. The final tournament is being held in Denmark between 11–25 June 2011....
and scored the opening goal against Liechtenstein in a 3–0 win.
Statistics
| Club | Season | League | Cup KNVB Cup The KNVB Cup is a competition in the Netherlands organized by the Royal Dutch Football Association since 1899. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. Outside of the Netherlands, it is often referred to as the Dutch Cup... |
Europe | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Ajax | 2007–08 Eredivisie 2007-08 The 2007–08 Eredivisie was the 52nd season of the Eredivisie, the top division of association football in the Netherlands. The season began in August 2007 and ended on 18 May 2008, with defending champions PSV retaining their title with 72 points.... |
22 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 27 | 2 |
| 2008–09 Eredivisie 2008-09 The Eredivisie 2008–09 is the fifty-third season of Eredivisie since its establishment in 1955. PSV were the reigning champions. The season began on 29 August 2008 with a game between Vitesse and FC Groningen and ended on 10 May 2009. A total of 18 teams take part in the league, consisting of 16... |
10 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 1 | |
| 2009–10 | 22 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 17 | |
| 2010–11 | 32 | 12 | 6 | 3 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 52 | 16 | |
| Total | 86 | 25 | 17 | 9 | 24 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 130 | 36 | |
Club
Ajax- EredivisieEredivisieThe 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....
(1): 2010-11 - KNVB CupKNVB CupThe KNVB Cup is a competition in the Netherlands organized by the Royal Dutch Football Association since 1899. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. Outside of the Netherlands, it is often referred to as the Dutch Cup...
(1): 2009-10