Stefan de Vrij

Stefan de Vrij
De Vrij playing for Lazio in 2018
Personal information
Full name Stefan de Vrij[1]
Date of birth (1992-02-05) 5 February 1992
Place of birth Ouderkerk aan den IJssel, Netherlands
Height 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in)
Playing position Defender
Club information
Current team
 Inter Milan
Number 6
Youth career
1997–2002 VV Spirit
2002–2009 Feyenoord
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2014 Feyenoord 135 (7)
2014–2018 Lazio 95 (8)
2018– Inter Milan 4 (1)
National team‡
2007–2008 Netherlands U16 3 (0)
2008–2009 Netherlands U17 18 (0)
2010–2011 Netherlands U19 9 (0)
2012 Netherlands U20 1 (0)
2011–2013 Netherlands U21 12 (0)
2012– Netherlands 36 (3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 15 September 2018
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 1 June 2018

Stefan de Vrij (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈsteːfɑn də ˈvrɛi̯]; born 5 February 1992) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a centre back for Serie A club Inter Milan and the Netherlands national team.

He began his career at his local club VV Spirit, and debuted as a professional for Feyenoord aged 17. He spent five seasons at the Eredivisie club, serving briefly as captain, before joining Lazio in July 2014.

A full international since 2012, De Vrij has earned over 30 caps for the Netherlands. He was in the Dutch team which finished third at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, and was selected for the Castrol Performance Index Team of the Tournament.

Early life

De Vrij grew up in Ouderkerk aan den IJssel, South Holland. He is the youngest son of Jan de Vrij, who played for local club VV Spirit, where Stefan de Vrij started his career. His older brothers Niels and Eric played football in their youth, but went different paths.[2]

Club career

Feyenoord

De Vrij training with Feyenoord in 2012

De Vrij played for local Ouderkerk aan den IJssel club vv Spirit for five seasons. At the age of 10, he attended a Feyenoord talent day. After various training sessions and a friendly match against ARC, De Vrij was officially asked to join Feyenoord's youth division.[2] At vv Spirit, De Vrij often played as a central midfielder, but at Feyenoord he got turned into a defender. The youngster developed himself rapidly. After playing for Feyenoord U15, De Vrij was one of the players to skip the U16 team to play in the U17 immediately.[2]

On 17 July 2009, De Vrij signed his first professional contract with Feyenoord until summer 2012.[3] De Vrij made his official debut for Feyenoord's first team on 24 September 2009, when he replaced Kelvin Leerdam in the 58th minute in the KNVB Cup away match against Harkemase Boys (0–5).[4] On 6 December 2009, De Vrij made his Eredivisie debut in the home match against FC Groningen (3–1), when he replaced Denny Landzaat in the 89th minute.[5] Aged 18 by its end, his first professional season saw him make 21 appearances, 17 of which were in the league.

During the 2012–13 season, De Vrij replaced Ron Vlaar as team captain. However, after a poor run of form in the following campaign, De Vrij was stripped of his armband as it was given first to star striker Graziano Pellè and then to vice-captain Jordy Clasie after the former struggled with disciplinary issues.[6][7]

Lazio

On 30 July 2014, De Vrij joined Serie A club Lazio for an undisclosed fee. He said "Lazio really proved that they wanted me and I am very happy I have made this move. I hope to become a more complete defender in Italy." De Vrij had been widely expected to follow his international manager Louis van Gaal to Manchester United.[8]

He made his debut on 24 August in the third round of the Coppa Italia, and scored the third goal of a 7–0 home win over third-tier Bassano Virtus.[9] A week later, he played his first Serie A match as Lazio began the season with a 3–1 defeat at A.C. Milan.[10] On 21 September, he was sent off in the 85th minute of a game away to Genoa which Lazio had been dominating, and two minutes later Mauricio Pinilla scored the only goal to give Genoa victory.[11] De Vrij featured in the 2015 Coppa Italia Final on 20 May against Juventus, being substituted for Keita at half time in extra time in an eventual 1–2 defeat.[12]

His second season began with the 2015 Supercoppa Italiana, playing the full 90 minutes of a 2–0 loss to Juventus in Shanghai.[13] In September, he picked up a knee injury on international duty but was passed fit to play a further match for the Netherlands, infuriating Lazio's medical staff.[14] He did not make a sufficient recovery, and was subjected to an operation the following month.[15] In November, it was confirmed that he would miss the next six months due to the injury.[16]

He scored his first goal for the club on 11 September 2016 in a 1–1 away draw to Chievo.[17]

In March 2018, Lazio's sporting director Igli Tare announced that De Vrij would be leaving the club on a free transfer in the summer.[18]

Inter Milan

Following months of speculation, on 28 May 2018, De Vrij announced that he signed a five-year contract with Internazionale to commence on 1 July.[19][20]

International career

Youth teams

De Vrij's strong development at Feyenoord did not pass by unnoticed, as he quickly received his first invitation for a national youth team.[2] On 21 November 2007, the Netherlands U16 won the friendly match against Ukraine U16 (1–0), with De Vrij's first appearance in the starting line-up.[21]

De Vrij was active on the 2009 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship in Germany. The Dutch team, aided by a strong contingent of seven Feyenoord players in the squad, finished second after losing the final to Germany in extra-time (2–1).[22] De Vrij was paired up with Dico Koppers in central defence[23] and participated in every match the Oranje played without getting substituted, making a notable contribution.[2] With a second place on the European Championship, the Netherlands U17 qualified for the 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Nigeria.

Senior team

On 7 May 2012, De Vrij was named in the provisional list of 36 players for the UEFA Euro 2012 tournament, one of nine uncapped players to be chosen by Netherlands manager Bert van Marwijk as part of the preliminary squad. He did not make the final cut. On 15 August 2012, De Vrij made his debut under new manager Louis van Gaal in the 4–2 loss against Belgium in a friendly match.

He was one of four Feyenoord defenders named in Louis van Gaal's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.[24] In the Netherlands' first game of the tournament, against Spain on 13 June, the referee gave a questionable penalty kick after 26 minutes after Diego Costa stood on De Vrij's foot and fell.[25] Xabi Alonso converted this penalty to put Spain 1–0 up. The Dutch fought back, and De Vrij scored their third goal, the first of his international career, as they eventually won 5–1.[26] De Vrij played in all of the Netherlands' matches as they eventually finished in third place. He and Arjen Robben were the two Dutch players selected to the Team of the Tournament.[27]

In the Netherlands' first game of UEFA Euro 2016 qualification away to the Czech Republic on 9 September 2014, De Vrij equalised with a header from Daley Blind's cross but the Dutch lost 2–1.[28] He headed the team into the lead after 13 minutes in an eventual 2–0 win over Spain in a friendly at the Amsterdam ArenA on 31 March 2015, also wearing the captain's armband after Wesley Sneijder's substitution.[29]

Career statistics

Club

Statistics accurate as of last match played on 18 September 2018.[30]
Club performance League Cup Continental Total
SeasonClubLeague AppsGoals AppsGoals AppsGoals AppsGoals
Netherlands League KNVB Cup Europe1 Total
2009–10FeyenoordEredivisie17140—211
2010–113011020331
2011–1230120—321
2012–132603030320
2013–143241020354
Total 1357110701537
Italy League Coppa Italia Europe1 Total
2014–15LazioSerie A30051—351
2015–1620102050
2016–172724000312
2017–183664071477
Total 9581419111810
2018–19Inter MilanSerie A41001051
Total 41001051
Career total 2341625117127618

1 Includes UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League matches.

International

Statistics accurate as of matches played on 31 May 2018.[31]
Netherlands
YearAppsGoals
201220
201370
2014162
201551
201600
201730
201830
Total363

International goals

Scores and results list the Netherlands' goal tally first.[31]
No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.13 June 2014Arena Fonte Nova, Salvador, Brazil Spain3–15–12014 FIFA World Cup
2.9 September 2014Generali Arena, Prague, Czech Republic Czech Republic1–11–2UEFA Euro 2016 qualification
3.31 March 2015Amsterdam Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands Spain1–02–0Friendly

Honours

Lazio

Netherlands U17

Netherlands

References

  1. ↑ "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil: List of Players" (PDF). FIFA. 11 June 2014. p. 25. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Dromen van doorbraak: Stefan de Vrij (16) ontwikkelt zich bij Feyenoord en Oranje sterk" [Dreaming of breakthrough: Stefan de Vrij (16) develops strongly at Feyenoord and Oranje]. AD (in Dutch). 3 February 2009. Retrieved 30 September 2009.
  3. ↑ "De Vrij tekent eerste profcontract" [De Vrij signs first prof contract]. Feyenoord.nl (in Dutch). 17 July 2009. Archived from the original on 23 February 2012. Retrieved 30 September 2009.
  4. ↑ "Feyenoord boekt onberispelijke zege in Friesland" [Flawless victory for Feyenoord in Friesland]. Feyenoord.nl (in Dutch). 21 November 2009. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 30 September 2009.
  5. ↑ "Feyenoord via uitstekende tweede helft langs FC Groningen" [Feyenoord over FC Groningen thanks to excellent second half]. Feyenoord.nl (in Dutch). 6 December 2009. Archived from the original on 8 December 2009. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
  6. ↑ "A host of Premier League clubs are chasing Dutch international Stefan De Vrij". Sky Sports. 18 December 2012.
  7. ↑ "Pelle accuses "Ajax" supporter". Fox Sports. 2 March 2014.
  8. ↑ "Stefan de Vrij: Netherlands defender signs for Lazio". BBC Sport. 30 July 2014. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  9. ↑ "Coppa Italia, Lazio a valanga. Udinese, Di Natale show" [Coppa Italia, Lazio avalanche. Udinese, the Di Natale show]. Sky Italia (in Italian). 24 August 2014. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  10. ↑ "AC Milan 3–1 Lazio: Inzaghi era starts with a bang". Goal.com. 31 August 2014. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  11. ↑ "Match report from Genoa v Lazio". Sky Sports. 21 September 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
  12. ↑ "Juventus 2–1 Lazio". BBC Sport. 20 May 2015. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
  13. ↑ "Juventus 2–0 Lazio: Mario Mandzukic and Paulo Dybala hand Juve win as new strikers seal Italian Super Cup for Serie A champions". Daily Mail. 8 August 2015. Retrieved 8 August 2015.
  14. ↑ Gladwell, Ben (9 September 2015). "Lazio hit out at Netherlands doctors over Stefan De Vrij injury". ESPN. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
  15. ↑ Amako, Uche (30 October 2015). "Manchester United rocked as defensive target needs surgery on knee injury". Daily Express. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
  16. ↑ Anderson, Jamie (4 November 2015). "Man United News: Shock six-month injury blow, £70m winger urged to join, Guardiola warning". Daily Star. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
  17. ↑ "Calendario e Risultati - Stagione 2016-17 - 3^ Giornata - Lega Serie A". www.legaseriea.it.
  18. ↑ "Tare Talks: De Vrij, Milinkovic-Savic and Lucas Leiva". The Laziali. 29 March 2018. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
  19. ↑ "'Ik denk me bij Inter nog verder te kunnen ontwikkelen'" (in Dutch). Algemeen Dagblad. 28 May 2018. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  20. ↑ "De Vrij: 'I've signed for Inter'". football-italia.net. 28 May 2018. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  21. ↑ "Onder 16 wint eerste oefenduel" [Under 16 wins first friendly]. KNVB (in Dutch). 24 September 2009. Archived from the original on 19 June 2009. Retrieved 26 September 2009.
  22. ↑ "Germany secure maiden U17 crown". UEFA. 18 May 2009. Archived from the original on 14 August 2009. Retrieved 26 September 2009.
  23. ↑ "Captain's guide: Netherlands". UEFA. 17 May 2009. Archived from the original on 20 May 2009. Retrieved 30 September 2009.
  24. ↑ "World Cup 2014: Netherlands announce final World Cup squad". BBC Sport. 31 May 2014. Retrieved 4 June 2014.
  25. ↑ "Spain earns first goal after questionable penalty call". USA TODAY SPORTS. 13 June 2014.
  26. ↑ "Spain 1–5 Netherlands". BBC Sport. 13 June 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2014.
  27. ↑ "World Cup 2014: Castrol Index Top 11". FIFA.com. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
  28. ↑ "Czech Rep. 2–1 Netherlands". BBC Sport. 9 September 2014. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
  29. ↑ "Netherlands 2–0 Spain: Rejuvenated Dutch ease pressure on Hiddink". Goal.com. 31 March 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  30. ↑ "Cookies op VI.nl". www.vi.nl.
  31. 1 2 "Stefan de Vrij". European Football. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
  32. ↑ "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil: Brazil-Netherlands". FIFA. 12 July 2014. Retrieved 21 August 2014.
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