Top facts about Michael Reiziger, the Traveler

Michael John Reiziger (Amstelveen, May 3, 1973) is a Surinamese - Dutch football coach and former professional football player.

He played mainly as a right back, but was also used as a central defender or left back.

Michael Reiziger’s age

is 48. Here you can find out the most important facts about Michael Reiziger, the former Netherlands defender.

In his early years, Reiziger played as a right winger and right half, but was retrained as a defender at the request of trainer Louis van Gaal around 1994.

The first fact about

is that he had his greatest sporting successes at Ajax in the mid-90s and in his early years at FC Barcelona. He also played 72 times for the Dutch national team, including four final tournaments.

He stopped playing football after the 2006/2007 season. From August 2008 he followed a training to become a Professional Football Coach. He was a match interim coach of Ajax at the end of 2017, after the previous resignation of Marcel Keizer.

Top facts about Michael Reiziger:

After establishing himself at Ajax, where he won one Champions League, he went on to play for four different clubs in four different nations, including Barcelona, for whom he played 249 official games in seven years, as well as Milan, Middlesbrough, and

.

An important

fact about Michael Reiziger

is that he was a member of the Dutch national team for a decade, appearing in three European Championships and the 1998 World Cup, when he finished fourth.

Michael Reiziger early life

Michael began his career with his hometown club, Sint Martinus, in Amstelveen, a suburb of Amsterdam. Speaking about

Michael Reiziger’s childhood

, it should be mentioned that he was discovered at the age of 12 and enrolled in the

training center.

At the age of 17, he earned his first professional contract, but he quickly needed to go out on loan to hone his talents. There is no information regarding

Michael Reiziger’s parents

.

Despite this, he won the UEFA Cup in 1992 before departing. He was first moved to Volendam, where his experience was not very positive, and then to Groningen, where he flourished. He scored six goals in 34 appearances as a right midfielder.

Michael Reiziger personal life

Michael Reiziger and his wife Manon Hanraets were married for several years until their relationship terminated in 2009. Together, the couple has three boys.

Gabriel, one of his kids, is a footballer who now plays for Ajax Amsterdam's U17 squad. Gabriel, like his father, plays on the right side, but rather than being a fullback, he is a winger.

In 2009, the former right-back stated that his wife had gone to an unknown place with their children last summer. According to De Telegraaf, which had access to the court papers at the time, this was the case.

A notable fact about Michael Reiziger is that he was residing in Barcelona in 2009, where he was studying to be a trainer. He discovered the absence of his boys a few months ago. Reiziger was supposed to maintain track on his kids throughout the summer, but his ex-wife Manon Hanraets didn't follow through.

Reiziger just learned that his ex-wife had fled to the Netherlands with their children. The ex-footballer, on the other hand, claimed that his children had spent their whole lives in Spain and spoke little Dutch.

Reiziger began a process with the Dutch authorities at the time to return the children to

. His ex-girlfriend declined to comment on the allegations, but she did say via her lawyer that there is no issue of kidnapping.

As a renowned player, Michael Reiziger has been engaged in numerous charity initiatives, especially after his retirement, and we have seen him play several charity football matches. For example, on June 5, 2016, he was a member of the Ajax Legends squad that faced the

Legends team in the Santiago Bernabeu stadium.

Michael Reiziger professional career

After making a name for himself at Ajax, where he won one Champions League title, Michael Reiziger went on to represent four teams in as many countries, notably Barcelona,

He made his debut for the Dutch national team on 12 October 1994, against Norway. He played for his country at the UEFA Euro 1996, 1998 FIFA World Cup, Euro 2000 and Euro 2004, retiring from international play after the latter.

Michael Reiziger club career

An important fact about Michael Reiziger is that he made his debut in the 1990/1991 season for Ajax main squad, then as a right winger.

Ajax

In his first 2.5 season with the team from Amsterdam, he played three games. On paper, he won the UEFA Cup during this period, but did not contribute to it himself. As he barely got around to playing, he was loaned out to FC Volendam halfway through his third season.

After ten games he threatened to end up in the second team, after which he left with a fight. Reiziger was of the opinion that in that case he could better represent Ajax 2 than for Volendam 2. The following season he was rented out to FC Groningen.

Here he had a full season for the first time, with 34 games and six goals. Because Clyde Wijnhard refused to be retrained as Ajax's right back, Coach Van Gaal then turned to Reiziger. His agreement with the retraining turned out to be a good choice.

In Ajax in the mid-90s, Reiziger grew into the team's permanent right back. In two seasons he won two league titles, two Dutch Supercups, once the UEFA Champions League, once the UEFA Super Cup and once the World Cup.

AC Milan

After the period in Amsterdam, Reiziger left for Italian champions

. There he received little appreciation in a tough season, in which the club finished in a disappointing eleventh place. Reiziger played ten games. When Van Gaal called on him again from Catalonia, he quickly left.

FC Barcelona

At FC Barcelona, Reiziger again became a regular player, winning the Spanish league title and the Copa del Rey. As a result of a previous European Cup win, Barça also played for the UEFA Super Cup in 1997/1998, which it also won.

The following season, Reiziger was reunited with Dutch players

, Winston Bogarde and Ronald and Frank de Boer, who were brought to Barcelona. Together they extended Barcelona's league title. In Reiziger third season in Spain, the club won nothing.

Barcelona did not compete with the absolute top in the following three years. Reiziger played less, especially in the 2001/2002 season, in which he was allowed to perform thirteen times.

Despite this, he normally remained first-choice for the backup position. In the 2003/2004 season, Barcelona started to recover, with a new board and a new coach the way up was started again. Reiziger played such an important role in this that he was awarded a place in the team of the year by the Spanish sports press.

Middlesbrough

A notable fact about Michael Reiziger is that he found a new employer in

, despite alleged interest from Valencia, among others. Together with compatriots Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Boudewijn Zenden and George Boateng, he was once again with several compatriots in the selection of a foreign club.

In the Premier League, Reiziger was the first choice of trainer Steve McClaren, but due to injuries he was not available. After a season and a half and 22 league games, the English team let him go.

PSV

PSV then brought the defender back to the Eredivisie. Here he did not convince most critics, but he did win the Dutch title with the club. During the 2006/2007 season he ended up on the reserve bench. When he played it was mainly as a left back.

On the last match day, he again won the national title with PSV. In May 2007 it was announced that his contract was not renewed. Reiziger wanted to finish his career in the Middle East, but nevertheless stopped playing football.

Michael Reiziger international career

An important

fact about Michael Reiziger

is that he made his debut for the Orange squad at the end of 1994 in a qualifier for the 1996 European Championship against Norway. Until the European Championship in Portugal ten years later, he remained an Orange player.

Reiziger played three European Championships and one World Cup. He found the net once, in an exhibition game against Germany.

He announced his retirement after the 2004 European Championship, with 72 caps to his name. In September 2005 he indicated that he was available again for the national team, but then national coach Marco van Basten never called him up.

Michael Reiziger coaching career

Based on his achievements as a football player (four final tournaments with the Dutch national team and two European club finals), Reiziger was eligible for an accelerated Professional Football Coach course.

On April 29, 2008 it was announced that Reiziger would participate in the trainer course. Former teammates

,

, and Patrick Kluivert also attended the training during the 2008/2009 season.

An important fact about Michael Reiziger is that he joined Sparta Rotterdam in the summer of 2013 as a youth trainer. On December 30, 2014, it was announced that Reiziger would become the assistant of new trainer Alex Pastoor.

On June 21, 2017, Reiziger signed a two-year contract as coach of Jong Ajax. He thus became the successor to Marcel Keizer, who was promoted to Ajax main squad coach on 17 June 2017.

On June 23, 2017, it was announced that former teammate Winston Bogarde had been appointed as Reiziger's assistant. Reiziger managed to take the title in the Eerste Divisie in his first season. Young Ajax thus became the first promising team to become champion in the First Division.

Michael Reiziger Champions League glory

The date was September 14, 1994, and Ajax was playing AC Milan. Never before or after has a single football match evoked such emotion and amazement across generations. An antique city-center stadium staged 21st-century football in a 20th-century setting under a pregnant Dutch sky.

The poignancy is understandably fresh, heightened by a faltering transition from European rulers to selling clubs. It's been a two-decade-long, often difficult shift.

The Champions League was in the midst of a transformation in 1994, and features of the event were recognizably contemporary. Bobby Haarms sat chain smoking in a rustic dugout, despite the presence of the logo, song, and heightened feeling of corporate-fueled pomp and ceremony.

There isn't a single leather automobile seat with a sponsor's logo sewn on it. The past and present were wonderfully intertwined.

The final of the 1994-95 Champions League season is indelible in the collective memory of football fans. Ajax's God-sent youth squad, dressed in a trademark deep purple and indicating a power shift in European football, beat and astonished AC Milan 1-0.

Their often-forgotten group stage encounter in Amsterdam's Olympisch Stadion, though, was as remarkable. It was a match with no precedent, no history, and no Dutch anticipation, unlike the final seven months later.

With the exception of Ajax's 1992 UEFA Cup victory, previous European success has been difficult to come by. It had been thirteen years since the Dutch club had advanced beyond the first round of the European Cup.

Milan, on the other hand, had reached the European Cup final four times in the previous five seasons, winning three of them, including the most recent against none other than Johan Cruyff's Barcelona Dream Team.

The clash in the group stage put van Gaal's underdogs on the way to European domination. Locking horns with the power of Milan paved Ajax's road to two consecutive Champions League finals, despite the fact that they were already stylish lords of the roost domestically.

If the opening round of Champions League group games in the current age has become predictable cautious affairs, this one might be mistaken for a final. It was on purpose for the cheerful van Gaal. His line-up, formation, and even philosophy, dare we say, would become legendary.

Ajax in the mid-1990s embodied the aggressive, offensive 3-5-2, 3-4-3, or 3-1-2-3-1 formation. Ajax's methods, like other art forms, were susceptible to interpretation. Van Gaal's side was filled with an authentic Amsterdam swagger and a defiant, though unrealized, confidence. Ajax's surefootedness, despite their domestic success, was an ambitious strategy against Milan's titans.

Despite the club's apparent lack of European heritage, the players and coaches shared a degree of familiarity. Frank Rijkaard, who had returned to Ajax from Milan in 1993, had an uncommonly warm greeting from Fabio Capello as the teams lined up in a narrow and dirty tunnel.

, who was well-known among the Ajax players, was on his second stint with Milan and the last of their famed Dutch triumvirate.

The nighttime air held a fiery mood in addition to the abundant downpour. As 'We Are the Champions' was shouted out of a vintage sound system, a sell-out audience provided enthusiastic support to Freddie Mercury. Perhaps a nod to the reigning European champs or the surprising champions-in-waiting.

Puddles appeared on the playing area, reflecting the brilliance of multiple flares.

Van Gaal's Ajax were the ideal storm, combining youth with experience and tactical discipline with flexibility. Danny Blind, Frank de Boer, and Michael Reiziger provided defensive tenacity and transitional flexibility in the back three.

The kingpin was blind, with elegance and expertise packed into every tight curl on his skull. De Boer and Reiziger were excellent at covering space, filling in as center defenders when necessary, and feeding the midfield.

Just ahead, Rijkaard's clever adaptability was important. Rijkaard was always three passes ahead when he was at the top of his game, and his aging legs were comfortably covered by those around him.

and Finidi George provided natural breadth and terrifying speed in the final third, with the focus squarely on the attack. Due of Rijkaard's ability to drop into defence, de Boer and Reiziger were able to effortlessly move between central defender and supporting wing-back responsibilities.

Midfield was the epicenter of tactical discipline. Edgar Davids joined Rijkaard in numerous holding duties, displaying positional knowledge and excellent obedience for his early years.

Ronald de Boer complimented Davids and Rijkaard, with explicit orders not to pass Overmars and George in front. All three were vital to Ajax's ability to attack from all over the field and swarm the opponent offensively.

Jari Litmanen and 18-year-old Patrick Kluivert, Ajax's front two, were somewhat of a wizard and apprentice pair, providing everything an intelligent European football fan could desire from an attack force.

The youth of van Gaal's Ajax has been much lauded, and deservedly so. When Rijkaard and Blind were taken out of the equation, Ajax's starting 11 had an average age of 22. When the veteran defenders are included, the total number of defenders is merely 24.

The Milan squad, on the other hand, was four years older on average. Even with the captain's armband wrapped around Franco Baresi's decorated wealth of experience, seniority was forced to matter for nothing.

While Alessandro Costacurta, Cristian Panucci,

, Demitri Albertini, Marco Simone, and Daniele Massaro were all injured or suspended for the Italians, nothing should detract from the excellence shown in Ajax colors.

The aforementioned Baresi and Gullit were still in Milan's starting lineup, along with Paolo Maldini, Zvonimir Boban, Roberto Donadoni, and Dejan Savievi.

The first half was controlled by Ajax. Gullit felt estranged, maybe because he was portraying a part that was beyond his 31 years. Kluivert and Davids blended tactical skill with tenacious determination to bring Ajax the closest to breaking the stalemate.

Ronald de Boer scored the game's first goal five minutes into the second half, cutting a clever finish over an advancing Sebastiano Rossi. De Boer took the ball deep and used clever movement and a wonderful one-two with Kluivert to start and complete the play.

Finidi A few seconds later, George came agonizingly close to doubling the lead. Davids sprang into a block, and George steamrolled onto the loose ball with some strong pressing to make

's mouth wet. With Rossi beaten, his shot shaved the post.

The Amsterdamse audience erupted in a frenzy under the intensity and colour of the Olympisch Stadion's aging floodlights. They demanded more after seeing a scalp and a declaration of purpose. Naturally, they didn't have to wait long.

On 64 minutes, Jari Litmanen hammered home the second goal after dancing, twisting, and turning the ball in what was quickly becoming a quagmire. Litmanen, like de Boer before him, began and completed the key play, demonstrating Ajax's unflappable fluidity.

Litmanen advanced, teased, coveted, and feed Overmars to the left, given room in the centre. Overmars blasted a clever cross that just about escaped Baresi and everyone but Litmanen after making easy work of stand-in full-back Stefano Nava.

The immaculate control and force created on the half-volley epitomized Litmanen's nuanced skill set, which was already slipping backwards. Rossi gets defeated because of his great connection.

Michael Reiziger contacts with Roy Keane

"If we're clever, we could earn him a red card for his erratic behavior." The date was September 2, 2000. Ireland's 2002 World Cup qualification campaign gets off to a shaky start against the Netherlands.

Mick McCarthy was keen to take his squad to a tournament at the third time of asking after barely missing out on the 1998 World Cup and the Euros two years later.

Of course, Ireland's preparations for the encounter at the Amsterdam Arena had been everything but straightforward. After pleading guilty to damaging a garda vehicle on Harcourt Street in Dublin after a wild night out, Mark Kennedy and Phil Babb were fired from McCarthy's unit.

Before playing a world-class Dutch side that contained Patrick Kluivert, Frank and Ronald de Boer, and

, Roy Keane was less than impressed with the sight of several of his colleagues munching cheese sandwiches.

Then, a few days after, Barcelona defender Michael Reiziger decided to add fuel to the fire by urging his fellow Dutch internationals to attempt to have Manchester United midfielder Roy Keane sent off by using his "dodgy temperament."

"Ireland boasts a few of great players, notably Manchester United's Roy Keane," Reiziger remarked on his own website, "but I hear he has an injury issue and may not participate."

"Assuming he does, we may get him a red card if we're wise since he has a bad temper." If a referee is aware of this information on a player, he or she is significantly more likely to get carded.

"We'll have to agitate Keane in some manner, maybe by grabbing his jersey or going into him after he passes the ball." Players have also been known to make snide remarks about another player's mother or the size of other body parts.

"I don't like for that aspect of the game, but if it helps us win, it's worth it." With a follow-up article on his website, Reiziger backed away from those statements.

"Perhaps in my previous journal post, I went a little far," he admitted. "Of course, I want to win this crucial match against Ireland and represent my nation to the best of my ability."

"But it was a mistake of mine to imply that one method to do this was to send a colleague to prison. That element of the game irritates me much.

"During games, there is a lot of nagging, with name-calling and shirt-pulling being pretty prevalent — it appears to be part of the game these days."

"Roy Keane is a tremendous player, and I have nothing but admiration for what he has accomplished with Manchester United and Ireland."

Keane like to let his football speak for itself.

While Keane has a reputation for ruthless retaliation (as Alf-Inge Haaland can testify), the Ireland skipper did not take the bait in Amsterdam.

Keane, who was partnered in the centre of the park by Mark Kinsella, put in a spirited performance to lift Ireland to an improbable 2-0 lead, with two goals from

and Jason McAteer.

"He was his usual indefatigable self, cajoling, sprinting, tackling, and doing nothing to inspire enmity among his opponents," Nicholas Harling, writing for The Guardian, said of Keane's performance.

Keane's remark was spot on. He let his football do the talking, as he did so frequently for United and Ireland.

"There is no battle in the center of the field," McCarthy wrote in his book on Ireland's 2002 World Cup experience.

"Roy Keane, who has been mocked in the press by Michael Reiziger in the build-up to this game, is the greatest center midfielder in Europe, and Mark Kinsella has really grown as his partner."

While Ireland gave it all they had to take a two-goal lead with 25 minutes left, they came short of achieving a historic victory to kick off their World Cup ambition.

With goals from Jeffrey Talan and Giovanni van Bronckhorst, the Dutch, led by Louis van Gaal, snatched a 2-2 draw.

While Keane was unhappy that Ireland squandered a two-goal lead and lost two crucial qualification points, Ireland ultimately went undefeated in a difficult group that contained Portugal.

Ireland seized the lead against the Dutch in the last game, with McAteer scoring once again, but this time McCarthy's team hung on to claim all three points and a place in the play-offs.

Some quick facts about Michael Reiziger:

Reiziger was born in Amstelveen, North Holland, to Surinamese parents. He began his career with hometown club AFC Ajax, making his first-team debut at the age of 17 before going on loan to FC Volendam and FC Groningen, where he scored a career-high six goals while also playing as a midfielder in the 1993–94 season.

Reiziger established himself as a famous defensive element upon his return to Ajax, helping the team win the UEFA Champions League in 1994–95, among other titles.

He joined A.C. Milan in 1996, but after a season marred by injury, he moved to FC Barcelona, where he spent the next seven years, arriving at the same time as compatriot and former Ajax manager Louis van Gaal. Though not an undisputed starter, he made over 200 appearances for the Catalans, helping them to back-to-back La Liga titles.

A notable

fact about Michael Reiziger

is that he received a Bosman transfer to Middlesbrough in 2004. Boro's only league goal came against

in December 2004.

After another season marred by physical issues, he departed and returned to PSV Eindhoven, where he finished his career (winning the Eredivisie in his second year and reuniting with Ajax, Barça, and national colleague Patrick Kluivert, though the two seldom played together).

Reiziger made his international debut for the Netherlands against Norway on October 12, 1994. He represented his country in the UEFA Euro 1996, FIFA World Cup 1998, Euro 2000, and Euro 2004 tournaments before retiring from international football.

Reiziger said shortly after signing with PSV that if the chance occurred, he would consider playing for the Netherlands again, but he was never recalled, making 72 appearances in 10 years.

Reiziger moved to Barcelona after retirement. He eventually went on to teach Sparta Rotterdam's youth team and later worked as an assistant coach to Gert Kruys and Alex Pastoor.

An important fact about Michael Reiziger is that he returned to Ajax on June 20, 2017, to take over as manager of the Eerste Divisie's reserves, succeeding Marcel Keizer. He guided the team to the league championship in his first season in command, although they were not eligible for promotion.

After Keizer's expulsion, he also played as an interim for the first squad in one match, beating Willem II 3–1 at home.

Mitchell van der Gaag took over as coach of Ajax B when Reiziger's contract ended. He was subsequently offered and accepted the post of assistant coach for the first team.

Gabril Reiziger (born 2005), Reiziger's son, also played for Ajax.

"For me, Barca have been the best club in Europe for years. In the last 20 years, Barca have the highest chances of winning back-to-back Champions League titles," Michael Reiziger commented.

Michael Reiziger social media

Regarding

Michael Reiziger’s social media

, it should be mentioned that he does not have any pages on any social media platforms.

Michael Reiziger body measurements

Speaking about

Michael Reiziger body measurements

, it should be mentioned that the former star is 178 cm and 75 kg.

Michael Reiziger net worth and salary

Michael Reiziger's net worth

is believed to be between $5 million and $6 million dollars. From his major profession as a soccer player, he has amassed a substantial fortune.

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