Ruud Krol

Club

He began his career at Ajax under manager Rinus Michels. In his first season at the club (1968–69), he only played one match. After the departure of left-back Theo van Duivenbode to Feyenoord in the summer of 1969, Krol became a regular player. When Ajax reached the UEFA European Cup in 1971, and won, Krol did not play because of a broken leg. Krol did play in the European Cup finals of 1972 and 1973. While others, such as Johan Cruyff and Johan Neeskens, left for new pastures, Krol, captain since the departure of Piet Keizer in October 1974, stayed at Ajax until June 1980. He moved to the North American Soccer League to play for the Vancouver Whitecaps for four months. He then joined Napoli in September 1980, where he played for the next four seasons and earned him the nicknames Grande Rudy (meaning Big Rudy) and Il Tulipano Azzurro (meaning the blue tulip). His last club was in France with Cannes, at the time playing in Ligue 2 (the French Second division), before retiring in 1986.

International

Internationally, Krol made his debut for the Netherlands in 1969 against England, retiring from international football in 1983. He was a crucial component in the Total Football side of the 1970s. A versatile defender, he could play in any position along the back four or midfield. In the 1974 FIFA World Cup, in which the Netherlands reached the final, Krol primarily played at left-back. He created Cruyff's goal against Brazil and scored a 25-yard screamer…

Krol started his career as manager with K.V. Mechelen in July 1989, but he was sacked in January 1990. In his managerial career, he has been head coach of Egypt, and has been assistant manager of the Netherlands (under Frank Rijkaard and Louis van Gaal) and Ajax (under Ronald Koeman). He became the interim manager of Ajax after the resignation of Koeman in February 2005. He was manager of Ajaccio in France Ligue 2 from 2006 to 2007. Krol managed Zamalek from 1997 to 1999, winning the Afro-Asian Club Championship in 1997. He returned as manager of Zamalek in August 2007. Krol's return to Zamalek was meant to be a stabilizing presence, after the club having gone through several managers in the preceding two seasons. He won the Egypt Cup with Zamalek in 2008, but left shortly after. He then signed a three-year contract with the South African giants Orlando Pirates. In his three years with the Orlando Pirates, he won two South African cups (the MTN8 and Nedbank Cup) and the national league, all in his last year in charge of the team. Despite that success his contract was not renewed. After his stint in South Africa, he was contacted to lead the Tunisia national team in the play-off qualifying round for the 2014 World Cup against Cameroon. He accepted that role and simultaneously became manager of CS Sfaxien and Tunisia in September 2013. In 2013, Krol won the 2013 CAF Confederation Cup and the Tunisian championship with Sfaxien, after a fierce battle with the other three of…

Club

International

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

During the 1974 FIFA World Cup, Krol made an own goal in the match against Bulgaria.

On 6 July 1972, Krol married Yvonne van Ingen. The couple has a daughter. On 26 September 1974, together with teammate Arie Haan, he opened a snack bar on Reguliersbreestraat in Amsterdam. His father Rudolf Josef (nicknamed Kuki) Krol (1922–2003) participated in the Dutch resistance during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. Thanks to Kuki Krol, a brother of referee Leo Horn, George Horn, was able to go into hiding and hence survived the war.