Erik Pieters

Early career

Born in Tiel, Pieters grew up in Enspijk and started as a central midfielder in the juvenile ranks of VV Rhelico in Rumpt. There he was scouted by Utrecht and, after a trial period, he joined the Utrecht youth academy.

Utrecht

Pieters made his Eredivisie debut for Utrecht in a 2–1 defeat against Willem II and went on to make 29 appearances in his maiden season as Utrecht finished the 2006–07 season in ninth place and they went on to win in the Intertoto Cup playoffs. In the 2007–08 season, Pieters made his European debut in July in the Intertoto Cup. He made 35 appearances and scored twice against Willem II and Groningen as Utrecht finished in tenth place. His solid performances attracted the interest of PSV Eindhoven.

PSV Eindhoven

On 9 July 2008, it was confirmed that Eredivisie champions PSV Eindhoven had signed the left-back for reportedly €2.5 million. Pieters was given the number 14 shirt, which was previously worn by Slobodan Rajković. He made his PSV debut in the league against his former club in a 5–1 win. His UEFA Champions League debut came in September against Atlético Madrid. After a bright start to his PSV career, he was benched after some indifferent performances. In 2008–09 Pieters played 23 times for PSV as they finished in 4th position, winning the 2008 Johan Cruijff Schaal by beating Feyenoord 2–0. The following season, Pieters regained his place in the starting eleven and played his part as PSV went on an unbeaten…

Pieters played five matches for the Netherlands at the 2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship where they reached the semi-finals. In 2007 Pieters was called up by Netherlands U-21 coach Foppe de Haan to be part of his squad for the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship held in the Netherlands. Pieters did not play in their first round group match against Israel (1–0 win), but did come on as a substitute in the second match against Portugal (2–1 win) to secure a semi-final spot and to qualify for the 2008 Summer Olympics. In the semi-finals against England (1–1, 13–12 after 32 penalty kicks), Pieters played in the starting eleven, but was later substituted by Tim Janssen to improve the attack as well as due to a small injury. Pieters returned on the pitch and the Dutch went on to retain their 2006 title by beating Serbia 4–1 in the final. On 7 May 2012, Pieters was named in the provisional list of 36 players for the Euro 2012 tournament, but he did not recover in time for the competition due to a foot injury. PSV team member Jetro Willems replaced him in the Euro 2012 squad.

Pieters' natural position is at left-back and describes himself as an attacking full-back and is also capable of playing as a centre-back if required. "My first job is to defend but I always want to attack and contribute as much as I can for the team. I've played a couple of times in the centre of defence as well but left-back is my position."

In July 2026, Pieters joined old club Stoke City U21s team as a professional development coach and also as an overage player.