Maarten Stekelenburg facts for kids
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Stekelenburg with Ajax in 2023
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Maarten Stekelenburg | |||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 22 September 1982 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Haarlem, Netherlands | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | |||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
| Zandvoort '75 | ||||||||||||||||
| VV Schoten | ||||||||||||||||
| 1997–2002 | Ajax | |||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||
| 2002–2011 | Ajax | 191 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2011–2013 | Roma | 48 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2013–2016 | Fulham | 19 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2014–2015 | → Monaco (loan) | 1 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | → Southampton (loan) | 17 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2016–2020 | Everton | 19 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2020–2023 | Ajax | 19 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| Total | 314 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | Netherlands U21 | 4 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2004–2021 | Netherlands | 63 | (0) | |||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||
Maarten Stekelenburg (born 22 September 1982) is a Dutch former professional footballer. He played as a goalkeeper.
Stekelenburg started his career at Ajax. He played 282 matches for them over nine seasons. During his first time at Ajax, he won nine trophies, including two Eredivisie titles. He also played for other big clubs like Roma, Fulham, Monaco, Southampton, and Everton.
After his contract with Everton ended, he returned to Ajax in 2020. Stekelenburg also played for the Netherlands national team. He made his debut in 2004 and played 63 games in total. He was the main goalkeeper when the Netherlands reached the final of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He also played in Euro 2012 and Euro 2020.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting at Ajax
Maarten Stekelenburg began playing football at small clubs called Zandvoort '75 and VV Schoten. When he was 15, he joined Ajax, a famous Dutch club. He played his first official game for Ajax on 24 February 2002.
In the 2002–03 season, he won his first trophy, the Johan Cruyff Shield, with Ajax. In 2004, Ajax won the Eredivisie league title, and Stekelenburg played in ten matches that season.
Becoming First-Choice Goalkeeper
Stekelenburg became the main goalkeeper for Ajax in the 2005–06 season. He helped his team win their first KNVB Cup that year. He also won the Johan Cruyff Shield again in 2006 and 2007. In the 2006–07 season, he won his second KNVB Cup.
He was named Ajax "Player of the Year" for the 2007–08 season. He played very well for both Ajax and the Dutch national team. In the 2009–10 season, he played in all of Ajax's league and Europa League matches.
After winning the 2010–11 Eredivisie title, Stekelenburg was named Ajax Player of the Year for the second time.
Playing for Roma
On 1 August 2011, Stekelenburg moved to Roma, an Italian club. He was the first Dutch footballer to play for Roma. He chose the number 24 shirt because his son was born on the 24th. He played his first game for Roma on 11 September 2011.
Time at Fulham and Loans
On 3 June 2013, Stekelenburg joined Premier League club Fulham in England. He signed a four-year contract. He made his debut on 17 August in a 1–0 win against Sunderland.
Loan to Monaco
On 9 August 2014, Stekelenburg went on loan to Monaco, a French club, for one season. He mostly played in cup matches. He helped Monaco win a penalty shootout in the Coupe de la Ligue by saving a penalty.
Loan to Southampton
On 22 June 2015, Southampton signed Stekelenburg on a one-year loan from Fulham. He played his first game for Southampton on 30 July in a Europa League match. He also played in the Premier League for them.
Joining Everton
On 1 July 2016, Stekelenburg joined Everton. He made his debut on 13 August. On 15 October, he saved two penalties in one game against Manchester City, which was a great achievement.
He faced some injuries during his time at Everton. In June 2020, he extended his contract until the end of the season, which had been delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Return to Ajax and Retirement
On 22 June 2020, Stekelenburg returned to Ajax. From February 2021, he became the starting goalkeeper again because of a ban on the regular goalkeeper. In May 2021, he signed a contract extension until 2022.
On 18 May 2023, Stekelenburg announced that he would retire from playing football at the end of that season.
International Career
Stekelenburg played for the Dutch national team. He made his first international appearance for the Netherlands on 3 September 2004. They won that game 3–0 against Liechtenstein.
He was part of the Dutch team for the 2006 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2008. In these tournaments, he was the backup goalkeeper to the famous Edwin van der Sar. In a Euro 2008 group match against Romania, he played and kept a clean sheet.
Becoming First-Choice and World Cup Final
After Edwin van der Sar retired from the national team, Stekelenburg became the Netherlands' main goalkeeper. He was chosen for the 2010 FIFA World Cup squad in South Africa.
Stekelenburg played a key role in helping the Netherlands reach the final of the competition. He made important saves throughout the tournament, especially against Brazil in the quarter-finals. In the final, the Netherlands lost to Spain after extra time.
He also played in all three matches during the group stages of Euro 2012.
Later International Appearances
On 7 October 2016, Stekelenburg played for the national team again after four years. This was a World Cup qualification match against Belarus, which the Netherlands won 4–1.
In 2021, he was called up for World Cup qualification matches. He was also the starting goalkeeper for the Euro 2020 campaign.
On 13 August 2021, Stekelenburg officially announced his retirement from international football.
Personal Life
Maarten Stekelenburg has some hearing loss in one ear.
Career statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Ajax | 2002–03 | Eredivisie | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 0 | |
| 2003–04 | Eredivisie | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | ||
| 2004–05 | Eredivisie | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 0 | ||
| 2005–06 | Eredivisie | 27 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 41 | 0 | ||
| 2006–07 | Eredivisie | 32 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 50 | 0 | ||
| 2007–08 | Eredivisie | 31 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 41 | 0 | ||
| 2008–09 | Eredivisie | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | ||
| 2009–10 | Eredivisie | 33 | 0 | 7 | 0 | — | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50 | 0 | ||
| 2010–11 | Eredivisie | 26 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 44 | 0 | ||
| Total | 191 | 0 | 22 | 0 | — | 52 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 282 | 0 | |||
| Roma | 2011–12 | Serie A | 29 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 33 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13 | Serie A | 19 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 22 | 0 | |||
| Total | 48 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 55 | 0 | ||||
| Fulham | 2013–14 | Premier League | 19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 21 | 0 | ||
| Monaco (loan) | 2014–15 | Ligue 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | |
| Southampton (loan) | 2015–16 | Premier League | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 25 | 0 | |
| Everton | 2016–17 | Premier League | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 21 | 0 | ||
| 2017–18 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2018–19 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||
| 2019–20 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | – | 0 | 0 | |||
| Total | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 26 | 0 | |||
| Ajax | 2020–21 | Eredivisie | 12 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | — | 21 | 0 | ||
| 2021–22 | Eredivisie | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | ||
| Total | 19 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 0 | |||
| Career total | 314 | 0 | 38 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 65 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 446 | 0 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands | 2004 | 1 | 0 |
| 2005 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2006 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2007 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2008 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2009 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2010 | 15 | 0 | |
| 2011 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2012 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2013 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2020 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 5 | 0 | |
| Total | 63 | 0 | |
Honours
Ajax
- Eredivisie: 2003–04, 2010–11, 2020–21, 2021–22
- KNVB Cup: 2005–06, 2006–07, 2009–10, 2020–21
- Johan Cruyff Shield: 2002, 2006, 2007
Netherlands
- FIFA World Cup runner-up: 2010
Individual
- Ajax Player of the Year (Rinus Michels Award): 2007–08, 2010–11
See also
In Spanish: Maarten Stekelenburg para niños
