Royston Drenthe facts for kids
Drenthe with Hércules in 2011
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 8 April 1987 | ||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Rotterdam, Netherlands | ||||||||||||
| Height | 1.67 m | ||||||||||||
| Playing position | Left winger, left-back | ||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||
| 1992–2000 | SC Neptunus | ||||||||||||
| 2000–2003 | Feyenoord | ||||||||||||
| 2003–2005 | Excelsior | ||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | ||||||||||
| 2005–2007 | Feyenoord | 29 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2007–2012 | Real Madrid | 46 | (2) | ||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | → Hércules (loan) | 17 | (4) | ||||||||||
| 2011–2012 | → Everton (loan) | 21 | (3) | ||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | Alania Vladikavkaz | 6 | (3) | ||||||||||
| 2013–2015 | Reading | 23 | (2) | ||||||||||
| 2014–2015 | → Sheffield Wednesday (loan) | 15 | (1) | ||||||||||
| 2015 | Kayseri Erciyesspor | 11 | (3) | ||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | Baniyas | 18 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | Sparta Rotterdam | 32 | (5) | ||||||||||
| 2019–2021 | Kozakken Boys | 9 | (3) | ||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | Racing Murcia | 28 | (9) | ||||||||||
| 2022 | → Real Murcia (loan) | 9 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2022 | Racing Mérida City | 15 | (3) | ||||||||||
| 2023 | Kozakken Boys | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||
| Total | 284 | (38) | |||||||||||
| National team | |||||||||||||
| 2005 | Netherlands U18 | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2005–2006 | Netherlands U19 | 6 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2006–2008 | Netherlands U21 | 17 | (4) | ||||||||||
| 2008 | Netherlands B | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2010 | Netherlands | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||
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Honours
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Royston Ricky Drenthe (born 8 April 1987) is a Dutch former professional footballer. He mostly played as a left winger or a left-back.
Drenthe started his football journey in 2005 with Feyenoord in the Eredivisie league. He then moved to the famous Spanish club Real Madrid in 2007. During his time at Real Madrid, he also played on loan for Hércules and Premier League side Everton. After leaving Real Madrid, he played for several clubs around the world, including Alania Vladikavkaz in Russia and Reading in England.
In 2016, Drenthe announced he was taking a break from football. However, he returned to play for Sparta Rotterdam in 2018. He also has a music career under the name Roya2Faces. Drenthe was a key player for the Netherlands under-21s, helping them win the 2007 European Championship. He also played once for the senior Dutch national team. He officially retired from professional football in November 2023.
Contents
Club Career
Early Years
Royston Drenthe was born in Rotterdam, Netherlands. He joined the youth team of his local club, Feyenoord, when he was 13 years old. He mostly played as a winger during his time in the youth academy.
After some challenges at Feyenoord, he moved to Excelsior, which was a feeder club for Feyenoord. At Excelsior, Drenthe improved a lot, especially when his manager played him as a left back. His good performances helped him get an offer to rejoin Feyenoord, which he accepted.
Playing for Feyenoord
In the 2005–06 season, Drenthe was promoted to Feyenoord's main team. He had impressed everyone by scoring three goals against Ajax in a youth tournament. He soon started training with the senior squad.
Drenthe made his first professional league appearance in the Eredivisie against Vitesse. In the 2006–07 season, he became a regular starter for Feyenoord. After helping the Dutch under-21 team win the European Championship in 2007, Feyenoord accepted a €14 million offer from Real Madrid.
Time at Real Madrid
Drenthe officially joined Real Madrid on 13 August 2007. He made his first official appearance for the club in the Spanish Supercup. He even scored a great goal from 40 yards out in that match!
He played regularly in his first season with Real Madrid, playing as a left-winger or left-back. He scored his first league goal in a big 7–0 win against Real Valladolid. In his second season, he faced some challenges and tough times with the fans, which affected his playing time.
In August 2010, Drenthe was loaned to Hércules for a season. He made his debut against Barcelona and scored his first goal for Hércules from a free kick. He played well for Hércules, scoring two goals in one game to help them win their first away match in a long time.
Loan to Everton
On 31 August 2011, Drenthe moved to English club Everton on a loan deal for the season. He made his Premier League debut as a substitute and scored his first goal for Everton in a 3–1 win against Wigan Athletic.
He continued to impress, scoring in his first full league start against Fulham. He also scored in an FA Cup match against Blackpool after just 49 seconds! However, towards the end of his loan, he had some disciplinary issues and was left out of the team.
Later Career
After his contract with Real Madrid ended in 2012, Drenthe joined Russian club Alania Vladikavkaz. He quickly made an impact, scoring a hat-trick in only his fifth game for the club.
In June 2013, he signed a two-year contract with Reading in England. He scored his first goal for Reading in a draw against Brighton & Hove Albion. He then had a loan spell at Sheffield Wednesday in 2014.
After his time in England, Drenthe played for Kayseri Erciyesspor in Turkey and Baniyas in the United Arab Emirates. In July 2016, he announced he was taking a break from professional football.
However, Drenthe returned to the game in July 2018, signing a one-year deal with Sparta Rotterdam in the Netherlands. After helping Sparta get promoted, he moved to Kozakken Boys. He later returned to Spain to play for Racing Murcia and Real Murcia, and then for Racing Mérida City. In late 2022, he returned to Kozakken Boys for a short period before announcing his final retirement from professional football on 17 November 2023.
International Career
After his first full season with Feyenoord, Drenthe was chosen to play for the Dutch under-21 team in the 2007 UEFA European Championship. He was a very important player as the team won the championship for the second time in a row. UEFA even named him the Player of the Tournament! The next year, he represented the Netherlands at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
On 14 November 2010, Drenthe was called up to the Dutch senior team for the first time. Three days later, he made his debut in a friendly match against Turkey.
Personal Life
Royston Drenthe comes from a family of footballers. His younger brother, Giovanni, is also a footballer and plays for Suriname internationally. His cousin, Georginio Wijnaldum, who also came through the Feyenoord academy, is a well-known footballer. Another cousin, Tyrone Conraad, also plays internationally for Suriname.
Drenthe has also explored other interests outside of football. He recorded a rap song called "Tak Takie" with his friend U-Niq. In 2014, he opened a clothing store in Rotterdam. In 2020, he faced financial difficulties. In 2023, he started working in the healthcare sector, following a family tradition.
In March 2021, Drenthe became a commentator for the Spanish sports TV program El Chiringuito de Jugones.
Honours
Real Madrid
- La Liga: 2007–08
- Supercopa de España: 2008; runner-up: 2007
Netherlands U21
Individual
Images for kids
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Drenthe playing for Hércules.
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Drenthe with Feyenoord.
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Drenthe with Real Madrid.
See also
In Spanish: Royston Drenthe para niños
