FC Den Bosch (Holland), SC Heerenveen (Holland), PSV Eindhoven (Holland),
Manchester United FC (England)
Honours
2002 Champions League top scorer (Manchester United) 2005 Champions League top scorer (Manchester United) 2001 Dutch League Champions (PSV Eindhoven) 2003 Premiership Champions (Manchester United) 2003 Premiership top scorer (Manchester United) 2004 FA Cup winner (Manchester United) 2001 Dutch Cup Finals (PSV Eindhoven) 2003 League Cup Finals (Manchester United)
Biography
Ruud van Nistelrooy (full name Rutgerus Johannes Martinius Ruud
van Nistelrooij, see letter IJ; born July 1, 1976 in Oss, North
Brabant, Netherlands) is a Dutch football player currently
playing for Manchester United. He wears the number 10 for
Manchester United and usually the number 9 or 10 for the
Netherlands
An exceptional striker with an outstanding finish ability and
excellent reflexes, often regarded one of the best strikers
playing today, he is also a regular penalty taker, and has
agility and balance for his height (1.88 m, 6 ft 2 in), which is
often credited to his previous training in gymnastics. For the
Netherlands, van Nistelrooy has a return of a goal every other
game, scoring 22 times in 44 appearances. For Manchester United,
he has scored 148 goals in 211 games as of February 2, 2006.
Spanning his time at PSV Eindhoven and Manchester United, van
Nistelrooy has scored 46 goals in 55 UEFA Champions League
matches (43 in 54 excluding qualifying matches which are not
officially counted by UEFA), an enviable return for any striker.
However recently he has not been on form and has replaced by
Louis Saha up front.
Van Nistelrooy started as a midfielder for Dutch second division
club-side, FC Den Bosch, but he was converted into a centre
forward at SC Heerenveen in 1997. In 1998, on his 22nd birthday,
he was signed by PSV Eindhoven for E6.8 million, a record sum of
money for a transfer between two Dutch football clubs.
Van Nistelrooy repaid the faith by scoring 31 goals in 34
matches in his first season at PSV and being voted Dutch Player
of the Year by his fellow professionals. In his second season,
he notched up another 29 goals.
He was also chosen in the list of 125 greatest living
footballers, chosen by Pelé.
