Patrick Kluivert

Patrick Stephan Kluivert (born 1 July 1976) is a Dutch former football player, coach and sporting director. He played as a striker, most notably for Ajax, Barcelona and the Netherlands national team. He was most recently the manager of Süper Lig club Adana Demirspor.

He was part of Ajax's Golden Generation of the 1990s, scoring the winner in the 1995 UEFA Champions League Final at the age of 18. He spent six years with Spanish club Barcelona, forming a successful partnership with Rivaldo, where both won the Spanish La Liga championship of 1999; in all, Kluivert scored 124 goals from 249 appearances.

Kluivert played for the Netherlands national team from 1994 to 2004. With 40 goals in 79 appearances, he is the fourth highest goalscorer for the Oranje. He played in three European Championships and the 1998 FIFA World Cup, and was joint top scorer at Euro 2000, where he scored a total of five times. In 2004, he was named in the FIFA 100, a list of the 125 greatest living footballers chosen by Pelé as part of FIFA's centenary observances. He is considered one of the best Dutch strikers of all time.

Kluivert began his coaching career as an assistant at AZ and NEC, as well as in Australia with the Brisbane Roar, before managing Jong Twente to a national title in the Dutch reserves league. He was an assistant to Louis van Gaal with the Dutch team that finished third at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. In 2015, he took over as head coach of the Curaçao national team for the country's 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying and the 2017 Caribbean Cup qualifying campaigns. He then served as a sporting director for Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona's academy, as well as coaching the Ajax A1 (under-19) team and assisting Clarence Seedorf for the Cameroon national team.

Early life
Kluivert was born on 1 July 1976 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. His father, a professional football player, was born in Suriname and his mother in Curaçao. Kluivert learned to play football on the street. After a year at football club Schellingwoude, he joined the Ajax Youth Academy at the age of seven.

He played several different positions as a youth, including defender. He was strong in technique, football intelligence, and speed, but was considered too impulsive. Kluivert played for the Dutch national teams under-15, under-16 and under-17.

Ajax
Kluivert was part of Ajax's Golden Generation of the 1990s. He made his debut in the senior team of Ajax on 21 August 1994 at the age of 18 in the Dutch Supercup win against the old arch rival Feyenoord, in which he scored his first goal. He went on to top score for Ajax in the 1994–95 Eredivisie with 18 goals in 25 appearances, as Louis van Gaal's team won the Dutch championship without losing a match.

The 1994–95 season also saw Kluivert make his mark – along with a host of youngsters from the Ajax youth academy, including Edgar Davids, Clarence Seedorf and Edwin van der Sar – on the European stage with a triumph in the UEFA Champions League. Kluivert came off the bench to score an 85th-minute winner in the 1995 Champions League Final against A.C. Milan in Vienna, Austria. He was the youngest player to score in a Champions League final, being only 18 years, 10 months and 23 days.

He was again the top scorer for Ajax in 1995–96, with 15 goals in 28 appearances, as the club won five trophies, including the Eredivisie. He scored the winning goal in extra time of the season opening Dutch Supercup against Feyenoord, and also scored the team's away goal in the 5–1 aggregate win over Real Zaragoza in the 1995 UEFA Super Cup.

On 28 November 1995, Kluivert was the only Ajax player to miss his kick in the 4–3 penalty shootout win over Grêmio in Tokyo that saw de Godenzonen win the Intercontinental Cup. Kluivert was also in excellent form during Ajax's defence of their Champions League trophy, scoring in away wins at Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, but a knee injury prevented him from participating for the full 90 minutes in the team's loss to Juventus in the 1996 UEFA Champions League Final.

At the end of an injury hit 1996–97 season, in which he made only 17 league appearances, Kluivert joined Milan on a Bosman transfer, after rejecting Ajax's offer of a new contract. He ended his spell in Amsterdam with 39 goals in 70 Eredivisie matches.

AC Milan
Kluivert's career at Milan started well, with the striker scoring a sensational goal against Juventus in the Trofeo Luigi Berlusconi. However, he spent only one season at the San Siro, scoring six times in 27 Serie A matches, as the Rossoneri finished in tenth place.

Barcelona
On 28 August 1998, an hour before the transfer deadline, Kluivert signed a four-year contract with Barcelona for a fee of £8.75 million. Kluivert was reunited with Louis van Gaal, a mentor from his days at Ajax. Kluivert scored 16 league goals and formed a successful partnership with Rivaldo, which enabled Barça to defend the Spanish La Liga in 1998–99. The following season was also a successful one for Kluivert. Although Barcelona failed to win a third consecutive league title, Kluivert finished the season as the club's top scorer with 15 league goals. Kluivert went on to be the top scorer twice more in his next four seasons at Camp Nou, but the team endured a period of five years without a major trophy after their title success in 1999.

In the summer of 2004, Kluivert was one of four Dutch players released by Barcelona. He ended his career at Barça with 124 goals from 249 appearances.

Newcastle United
Kluivert joined Newcastle United on a free transfer in July 2004. He stated that his reasons for joining Newcastle was due to the overwhelming reaction he received whilst playing for Barcelona against Newcastle during a pre season friendly, as well as teaming up with Newcastle's star players, such as Alan Shearer. Kluivert scored some classy and crucial goals at home and away from St James' Park, namely in winning strikes against both Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup, with both games ending 1–0 to Newcastle. He also scored away against Olympiakos in a 3–1 win in the first leg of the round of 16 of the UEFA Cup. Kluivert eventually scored five goals in all in that season's competition. Altogether, he scored 13 goals in his debut season, being Newcastle's overall second highest goal scorer for the 2004–05 season. Despite these feats, Kluivert was released by Newcastle in the summer of 2005.

Valencia
Kluivert decided to return to Spain to play at the Mestalla for Valencia. During the 2005–06 season, Valencia finished third in La Liga, thus qualifying for the Champions League after a one-season absence. Kluivert played for a total of 202 minutes, as he spent most of the season injured.

PSV
Despite widespread rumours that Kluivert was to return home to Johan Cruyff Arena, Kluivert's return to the Eredivisie was to be with PSV, with whom he signed a one-year deal in 2006. Just as with his debut for Ajax, Kluivert made his PSV debut against Feyenoord in a 2–1 win, coming on as a substitute. After that, he had two injuries during the first half of the season, which limited his playing time. In a game against Ajax at the Philips Stadion, Kluivert refused to celebrate after scoring a goal against his former club. He was eventually released in July 2007.

Lille
On 25 July 2007, Kluivert joined French side Lille.

International career
Kluivert made his full international debut on 16 November 1994 in a European qualifier against the Czech Republic, replacing Youri Mulder after 13 minutes of a 0–0 draw in Rotterdam. In his second match, on 29 March 1995, he replaced Ronald de Boer after 77 minutes, and seven minutes later scored his first international goal to wrap up a 4–0 home qualifying win over Malta.

In December 1995, Kluivert scored both goals in the Netherlands' 2–0 UEFA Euro 1996 qualifying play-off win over the Republic of Ireland at Anfield, to qualify the Oranje for UEFA Euro 1996. Kluivert missed most of the tournament with a knee injury, but he scored against the host nation England, enabling the Netherlands to qualify for the knock-out round over Scotland on goals scored. There, they lost in a penalty shootout to France after a 0–0 draw.

At the 1998 FIFA World Cup, Kluivert was sent off against Belgium by referee Pierluigi Collina, after elbowing Lorenzo Staelens. He made amends when selected to play against Argentina in the quarter-finals of the same tournament, where he scored the opening goal. In the next round, he scored a late equalising goal from a header to draw his team level with Brazil in the semi-final, although the Netherlands went on to lose the penalty shootout.

At UEFA Euro 2000 held in the Netherlands and Belgium, Kluivert scored a hat-trick in the 6–1 quarter-final demolition of Yugoslavia; he was originally credited with four goals, but the third was later re-attributed as an own goal by Yugoslavia's Dejan Govedarica, after Kluivert admitted not getting a touch on Paul Bosvelt's cross. Had all four goals stood, Kluivert would have been the first player to score four times in a European Championship match. The Dutch were eliminated in the semi-finals by Italy on penalties; he missed one of their two spot-kicks in normal time, but did score in the penalty shoot-out. With five goals in as many games, he claimed the Golden Boot jointly with Savo Milošević.

Kluivert would once again enter UEFA Euro 2004 wearing the famous #9 jersey for his country, with the Dutch reaching the semi-finals of the tournament.

As well as from being left out of the 2006 FIFA World Cup squad by coach Marco van Basten, Kluivert was not called up to play in any of the qualifying games leading up to the World Cup either. This was due to the fact that he suffered persistent injuries, which prevented him from playing for his club during the 2005-06 season. Kluivert was the all-time leading goalscorer for the Dutch national team with 40 goals, until he was surpassed by Robin van Persie in 2013.

Style of play
Although tall in stature, Kluivert possessed quick feet and an impressive first touch. Similar to Brazilian footballer Ronaldo, he often used several feints, namely the Cruyff turn, to great effect to go past defenders, due to his pace, strong technical skills, close control and football intelligence. Kluivert also utilised his height, power and strong physique to dominate aerial balls, and was considered to possess one of the best headers in the then-contemporary game. A versatile player, with an eye for goal, he also possessed good vision, and was capable of playing in several other positions across the pitch. Despite his ability, he drew criticism for his character and attitude throughout his career.

Early career
On 29 April 2008, Dutch media reported that Kluivert would take part in the coaching course of the Dutch Football Association (KNVB) to become a professional football coach. The KNVB requires that all coaching badge candidates complete this sort of apprenticeship.

On 18 July 2008, it was reported on the football website Goal that Kluivert would be spending the 2008–09 season as a member of the backroom coaching staff of Eredivisie club AZ. Later on, in an interview on Soccer AM, Kluivert revealed his role involved coaching the strikers at AZ.

In January 2010, Kluivert took a position as an assistant coach for Australian A-League side Brisbane Roar under head coach Ange Postecoglou.

On 19 May 2010, Kluivert told journalists he ruled out a comeback as a football player. From August 2010 onwards, he was an assistant coach for N.E.C., coaching the strikers. In the 2011–12 season, he moved on and took charge of the Twente youth and reserve team, coaching Jong Twente to a national title in the Beloften Eredivisie.

In August 2012, Kluivert joined the Netherlands national team coaching staff to work under head coach Louis van Gaal. Kluivert's time with the Netherlands culminated with a third-place finish in the 2014 FIFA World Cup campaign.

Curaçao
On 5 March 2015, it was announced that Kluivert would take over as manager of the Curaçao national football team for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification. Curaçao progressed through the first two qualifying rounds, defeating Montserrat and Cuba. On 8 September 2015, Curaçao were eliminated in the 2018 FIFA World Cup third qualifying round by El Salvador, losing 2–0 on aggregate score. Having helped the country to their best performance yet in World Cup qualifying, Kluivert announced his resignation as head coach on 10 September 2015. While pursuing other ventures, he remains a close advisor to the Curaçao Football Federation.

On 24 February 2016, Kluivert announced his decision to remain head coach of Curaçao ahead of the teams' Caribbean Cup qualifying matches against the Dominican Republic and Barbados. On 2 May 2016, it was announced that Kluivert would take over as head coach of the Ajax A1 (under-19) selection ahead of the 2016–17 season, where he would coach his son Justin Kluivert, with the team having secured placement in the UEFA Youth League the previous year.

Following his announcement to join Ajax, Kluivert remained head coach of Curaçao for round two of the Caribbean Cup qualifiers, where they faced Guyana and the U.S. Virgin Islands in group three. Curaçao won both their matches at home, defeating Guyana 5–2 and the U.S. Virgin Islands 7–0 in his final match in charge. On 14 July 2016, it was announced that Kluivert would no longer coach the under-19 team of Ajax, but that he would instead take over the position as director of football for French club Paris Saint-Germain. He expressed that his intention was to stay with Ajax, but that he could not refuse the offer made by PSG.

His efforts for the national team of Curaçao did not go without merit, as the team secured qualification for both the 2017 Caribbean Cup and the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup, where they would compete for the first time in forty years under the guidance of Remko Bicentini and Kluivert.

Assistant and interim duties
In August 2018, Kluivert became Seedorf's assistant at the Cameroon national football team; they were both relieved of their duties in July 2019.

Kluivert became the academy director of Barcelona only days after leaving Cameroon. However, the club announced in March 2021 that his contract would be allowed to expire in June.

In May 2021, Kluivert returned to the Curaçao national team on an interim basis, while compatriot Guus Hiddink recovered from COVID-19. In July, the team withdrew from the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup, due to an outbreak of the same virus.

Adana Demirspor
On 30 June 2023, Turkish club Adana Demirspor announced the appointment of Kluivert as their new manager by signing a two-year contract. On 4 December 2023, he parted ways with Adana Demirspor by mutual agreement.

Personal life
Kluivert is the second son of former football player Kenneth Kluivert, who played for SV Robinhood in the SVB Hoofdklasse and for the Suriname national team. His mother Lidwina Kluivert, was born in Willemstad, Curaçao, in the former Netherlands Antilles, to a Surinamese father and Curaçaoan mother. Lidwina died on 27 February 2023 due to long-term health issues. His parents were married in Paramaribo, and both his elder siblings were born in Suriname, before the family emigrated to the Netherlands in 1970.

On 9 September 1995, Kluivert, then 19 years old and still playing for Ajax, was the driver in a car accident in Amsterdam, where a 56-year-old man was killed and a passenger was seriously injured in a collision. Kluivert collided with a Ford Orion saloon while driving an uninsured BMW M3 sports car he had borrowed from a friend at a speed of approximately 104 km/h (64 mph) while in a 50 km/h (31 mph) residential zone. Though he denied he was guilty for causing death by dangerous driving, he was found guilty in court and sentenced to 240 hours of community service. It was later revealed that the man, 56-year-old Martin Putnam, who worked as a theatre director, was also an Ajax supporter. The conviction meant that Kluivert needed special documentation to enter the United States when Barcelona played pre-season matches there in 2003.

He has four children—Quincy, Justin, Ruben and Shane. Justin, like his father, came through the Ajax youth setup, formerly played for Valencia and was capped for the Netherlands; as of August 2023 he plays for Bournemouth. Ruben made his debut for Utrecht in 2022.

International

 * Scores and results list the Netherlands' goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Kluivert goal.

Player
Ajax
 * Eredivisie: 1994–95, 1995–96
 * Super Cup: 1994, 1995
 * UEFA Champions League: 1994–95
 * UEFA Super Cup: 1995
 * Intercontinental Cup: 1995

Barcelona
 * La Liga: 1998–99

'''PSV
 * Eredivisie: 2006–07

Individual
 * Ballon d'Or: 5th place (1995)
 * UEFA Euro 2000 Golden Boot (five goals)
 * UEFA Euro 2000 Team of the Tournament
 * FIFA 100
 * Netherlands All-Time Top Scorer: 2003–2013
 * Dutch Football Talent of the Year: 1995
 * Bravo Award: 1995

Manager
Jong Twente
 * Beloften Eredivisie: 2011–12