Wesley Sneijder

Ajax

Sneijder moved to Ajax's famous youth academy at age seven after beginning as a youth player with local Utrecht club DOS. Following his older brother's footsteps, he signed for Ajax, initially on trial but subsequently impressed enough to be signed on a permanent basis. He first made the bench as an unused substitute for Ajax in a 2–0 win at SBV Excelsior on 22 December 2002 when manager Ronald Koeman, troubled by an injury-filled squad, called him up, advised by Danny Blind, the then-coach of the Ajax youth squad. On 2 February 2003, Sneijder made his official Ajax debut against Willem II in a 6–0 win. He quickly established himself in the first team, starting in the Champions League quarter-final match against A.C. Milan on 23 April 2003. On 5 March 2003, Sneijder scored his first goal for Ajax in a 4–1 win over FC Groningen in the KNVB Cup. On 13 April, he scored his first Eredivisie goal against NAC Breda in a 3–0 win. He scored three further league goals in wins against Roda JC, RKC Waalwijk and De Graafschap. The following season, he scored nine league goals as Ajax won the 2003–04 Eredivisie title. Sneijder's performances saw him awarded the Johan Cruijff Prijs for the season's best young player in the Netherlands. On 14 September 2005, he scored his first Champions League goal in a group match against AC Sparta Praha. Ajax qualified for the knockout stage, with Sneijder scoring again in a 4–2 win over FC Thun. On 7 May 2006, Sneijder was in the starting…

Sneijder made his debut for the Netherlands under-21 side against the Czech Republic on 28 March 2003. His first game with the senior Dutch side was against Portugal on 30 April that same year when he became the eighth-youngest player to play for the Netherlands in the first team's history. On 9 June 2017, he became the nation's most capped player of all-time when he made his 131st appearance in a 5–0 win over Luxembourg, surpassing the record which had previously held by Edwin van der Sar for 4002 days.

Euro 2004

Sneijder reached the UEFA Euro 2004 semi-finals with the Netherlands. He began the competition mainly on the bench, and was subbed into two group stage matches: his team's first match against Germany and their third match against Latvia. He had also contributed two goals in the qualifying tournament.

2006 World Cup

Sneijder started all four games for the Netherlands at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. He received one of the record 16 yellow cards doled out during the infamous Round of 16 clash with Portugal (titled the "Battle of Nuremberg") after pushing the Portuguese midfielder Petit to the ground during a brawl between Portuguese and Dutch players; Portugal went on to win 1–0.

Euro 2008

In the build-up to Euro 2008, Sneijder scored a free kick in a friendly against Wales on 31 May, making it his second strike from a direct free kick in a row. The game ended 2–0 with a goal from fellow Real Madrid teammate Arjen Robben. Sneijder…

A creative and versatile midfielder, Sneijder was recognised as one of the classic playmakers of the 2010s. From his impeccable placement and confirmed ability to score from free kicks, Sneijder earned the reputation as a dead-ball specialist. Because of his short stature, he was quick and strong on the ball, and his passing range was enhanced by his ambidexterity; he was also renowned for his powerful striking ability from long range, with either foot. In addition to his vision and ability to create chances for teammates, Sneijder was also noted for his intelligence and great technical ability. Although he began his career in his preferred role as an attacking midfielder behind the forwards, he was capable of playing in several midfield positions and was also deployed on the wings or on occasion even up front as a second striker or main striker; in later seasons, he was usually played in the centre, as a deep-lying playmaker, due to his ability to dictate the tempo of his team's play in midfield with his passing, although he had stated that he did not favour this position. During the 2010 FIFA World Cup, he was also deployed in a new role which was later described as a false-10 or central winger, due to Sneijder's tendency to drift from the centre into a wide position when in possession of the ball. Despite his talent, he also drew criticism at times for his limited defensive work-rate as well as his lack of pace, and was also known to be prone to injury.

Wesley Sneijder was born in Utrecht into a football family: his father and his older brother Jeffrey were both football players. His younger brother Rodney is currently also a professional football player.