VV Bedum (Holland), FC
Groningen (Holland), PSV Eindhoven (Holland), Chelsea FC (England)
Honours
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Biography
Arjen Robben (born January 23, 1984, Bedum, Netherlands) is a
striker for the Dutch national team and Chelsea, having recently
transferred to the English club from Dutch power PSV Eindhoven.
In his younger years he played for the local footballclub VV
Bedum. Later he transferred to FC Groningen. In his first season
he won the Player of the Year prize at his club. After 2 seasons
in Groningen Robben went to PSV for €4.2 million.
Again after 2 seasons of great football at PSV, he was sold to
Chelsea. Manchester United was the first in line to buy Robben.
But PSV wasn't happy with the €7 million offer. Chelsea offered
€18 million and PSV sold him.
In Euro 2004 during a match against the Czech Republic, the then
Dutch team manager Dick Advocaat substituted Robben with Paul
Bosvelt. The Dutch team eventually lost that match after leading
by two goals. That decision brought severe criticism on Advocaat
and as a result, Advocaat resigned from his post.
In another Euro 2004 match, Robben scored the winning goal
against Sweden during a penalty shootout in a quarterfinal
match. He did not make his competitive debut for Chelsea until
November 2004, as he was injured in a pre-season friendly match
against A.S. Roma, breaking a metatarsal bone in his right foot.
However, since returning from injury, Robben (in combination
with Damien Duff) has made an impressive impact with his
explosive speed, dribbling skills and finishing; and in November
2004 he was awarded the prestigious player of the month award.
In a game against Blackburn Rovers on February 2, 2005 he broke
two metatarsal bones in his left foot, ruling him out for two
months.
On March 19th, 2005 Robben returned to the Chelsea team. Robben
came on for Damien Duff midway through the second half and
played an instrumental role in one of Mateja Kezman's two goals.
Chelsea went on to defeat Crystal Palace 4-1. But injury soon
caught up with him again, he is force to be taken off in a World
Cup 2006 Qualifying match for Netherlands, causing him to miss a
critical Champions League Match against Bayern Munich.
