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The Dutch national team has produced some of the most impactful players in their rich footballing history. Players like Dennis Bergkamp, Marco van Basten, Ruud Gullit, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Edwin van der Sar have achieved greatness with club and country in the past.
Johan Cruyff was arguably ahead of them all and is considered a pioneer of the sport. He is world-renowned for 'inventing' a turn to deceive defenders. The move went on to be named the 'Cruyff turn'.
Dutch teams in the past have also used 'total football' as a tactic. It is a set-up in which various players in different positions across the pitch can be interchanged to create different openings to attack. Great Dutch coaches like Rinus Michels and Frank Rijkaard have been experts at using the tactic.
The Dutch team would not have achieved greatness without great players in their ranks. Many have won a variety of silverware with their clubs, however, the Dutch team were unfortunate not to win a major honor in the 21st century. They came close at the FIFA World Cup in 2010, falling at the last hurdle in a 1-0 loss to Spain in the final.
On that note, let's look back at five of the greatest Dutch players of the 21st century.
#5. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar
Dirk Jan Klaas Huntelaar, commonly known as Klaas-Jan, was born in Voor-Drempt, Netherlands, in 1983. He broke through the youth ranks at PSV Eindhoven and debuted for the club in 2002. The Dutchman has since played for a variety of clubs including Ajax, Real Madrid and AC Milan, among others.
Huntelaar is one of the most underrated strikers of this century. He has played 662 club games over the course of his career, scoring 366 goals and providing 89 assists. Huntelaar has won two domestic league titles and five domestic cups in his career.
His most notable spells came with Ajax and Schalke 04, where he scored 158 and 128 goals respectively. Earlier this year, Huntelaar became the player with the most Eredivisie goals this century.
The Dutchman has played 76 times for his country, scoring 42 goals and providing 12 assists. He is their second-highest goalscorer of all-time, eight behind Robin van Persie in first place.
He retired from the national team in 2015 having been a runner-up in the 2010 World Cup and a bronze-medal winner in the 2014 edition.
Huntelaar currently plays for Schalke, who are in fourth place in the 2. Bundesliga this season.
#4. Rafael van der Vaart
Rafael van der Vaart was born in Heemskerk, Netherlands, in 1983. He came through the ranks at Ajax as a youngster and made his senior debut for the club in 2000. Playing in midfield, van der Vaart's preferred role was as an attacking midfielder.
He enjoyed spells at Real Madrid, Tottenham Hotspur and Real Betis, among others, during his 18-year club career. Van der Vaart was the first-ever recipient of the Golden Boy award in 2003.
The Dutchman won two Eredivisie titles, one KNVB Cup, one Supercopa de Espana and one Danish Superliga title in his career. He played in 546 club games, scoring 175 goals and assisting 118.
Van der Vaart mainly thrived in a playmaking role in the center of midfield. He controlled the attacking tempo for his teams with the ball at his feet. The Dutchman could shoot reasonably well with with both feet and was a threat from long-range.
Here's a video of the midfielder scoring a long-range goal for Hamburger SV against Arsenal in the Champions League:
Rafael van der Vaart played in 109 games for the Dutch national team, scoring 25 goals and assisting 29 goals. He ranks fourth on the list of all-time appearances for Oranje.
The Dutchman retired from the Dutch team in 2013 owing to recurring injury issues that kept him out of the side. He retired from club football in 2018 and currently works as a presenter and analyst on Dutch television.
#3. Wesley Sneijder
Wesley Sneijder was born in Utrecht, Netherlands, in 1984 and began his youth career with Ajax. He made his senior debut for them in 2002 and went on to play for multiple clubs over the course of his career. Notable ones include Real Madrid and Inter Milan.
Sneijder has made 573 total club appearances, scoring 152 goals. He won one league title each with Ajax, Inter and Real Madrid, as well as two titles with Galatasaray. Sneijder has also won seven domestic cups in his illustrious career.
The Dutchman won the UEFA Champions League with Inter Milan in 2009-10 and was named UEFA's Midfielder of the Year in 2010. It capped off an incredible season in which Sneijder won several honors including the Italian treble.
The Dutchman made 134 appearances for his country, scoring 31 goals and setting up a further 32. His highest point for the Netherlands was when they finished runners-up at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, with Sneijder bagging the Silver Ball.
Sneijder retired from the national team in 2018 as the most-capped Dutch player ever. A year later, he called time on his club career as well.
#2. Robin van Persie
Robin van Persie was born in Rotterdam, Netherlands, in 1983. He began his youth career at local club Feyenoord and debuted for them in 2001. Van Persie played the majority of his career as a striker, sometimes being deployed on the left wing. He enjoyed successful spells at multiple clubs, most notably in England with Arsenal and Manchester United between 2004-15.
Over the course of his club career, the Dutchman has made 594 appearances, scoring 274 goals and providing 102 assists. He has won the Premier League, the FA Cup, the KNVB Cup and the UEFA Cup once each.
Van Persie has made 102 appearances for the Dutch national team, scoring 50 goals and setting up a further 20. He is their all-time top scorer. In 2010, RvP began Oranje's scoring at the FIFA World Cup in style, scoring an acrobatic header to equalize for his team.
You can watch the goal here:
The 'flying Dutchman' was also known for his volleying ability. He scored some thunderous volleys in his career. On one occasion while at Arsenal, he came barrelling down to the edge of the box and smashed a volley in off a cross from Emmanuel Eboue.
Watch the goal here:
Van Persie hung up his boots and retired from national-team duty in 2017. A couple of years later, in 2019, he played his last game for Feyenoord and called it quits in club football.
The Dutchman has worked as Feyenoord's assistant manager since 2020.
#1. Arjen Robben
Arjen Robben was born in Bedum, Netherlands, in 1984. He came through the ranks at Groningen's youth academy and made his senior debut for the club in 2000. The Dutchman went on to play for other prominent clubs like Chelsea, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich over the course of his career. He is most remembered for his 10-year spell at Bayern.
Robben has played in 614 total club games, scoring 209 goals and providing 166 assists. He has won one Eredivisie title, two Premier League titles, one La Liga title and eight Bundesliga titles. He has also won one UEFA Champions League in his illustrious career.
For the Dutch team, Robben played 96 games, scoring 37 times and providing 34 assists. He tied for fifth spot in their all-time scoring charts, level with Dennis Bergkamp.
Robben was known for his extremely potent left-foot curler, which he executed by cutting-in from the right wing. In 2011 in a Champions League game against Fiorentina, the Dutchman was allowed to cut in onto his left foot, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Watch the thunderous goal here:
Arjen Robben retired from international football in 2017 and followed suit by doing the same in club football in 2021. He will be remembered as the greatest Dutch footballer of the 21st century!
