Jordi Cruyff

Personal information
Full name	Johan Jordi Cruijff
Date of birth	9 February 1974 (1974-02-09) (age 35)
Place of birth	Amsterdam, Netherlands
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Playing position	Attacking midfielder
Club information
Current club	Valletta (player-assistant manager)
Number	77
Youth career
1981–1988	Ajax
1988–1992	Barcelona
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1992–1995	Barcelona B	51	(16)
1994–1996	Barcelona	41	(11)
1996–2000	Manchester United	34	(8)
1999	→ Celta Vigo (loan)	8	(2)
2000–2003	Alavés	94	(7)
2003–2004	Espanyol	30	(3)
2006–2008	Metalurh Donetsk	28	(0)
2009–	Valletta	2	(1)
National team‡
1995–2004	Catalonia	9	(2)
1996	Netherlands	9	(1)
Teams managed
2009–	Valletta (assistant)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 07:49, 22 August 2009 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 18:00, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

Johan Jordi Cruyff (born 9 February 1974 in Amsterdam, Netherlands) is a Dutch footballer currently playing for Valletta in the Maltese Premier League, where he also acts as the side's assistant manager.

Mainly an attacking midfielder, he could also appear as a second striker, and is the son of Dutch former player and manager Johan Cruyff.

[edit] Early life

Although born in Amsterdam, Cruyff spent his early life in Spain where his father Johan was playing for Barcelona. He was allegedly named after Sant Jordi, the patron saint of Catalonia.^{[citation needed]} In 1981, the Cruyff family returned to the Netherlands, where the player was introduced by his father in Ajax's youth ranks at the age of seven, after having watched several matches. In 1988, when Cruyff was fourteen, he followed his father back to Barcelona, as the latter had been appointed Barcelona's head coach.

[edit] Club career

[edit] Barcelona

In 1992, Jordi made his debut for Barcelona B in the Segunda División, and two years later joined the senior team during a pre-season tour in the Netherlands, where he scored hat-tricks against Groningen and De Graafschap. On 4 September 1994, his father gave him his top flight debut in, a 2–1 defeat at Sporting Gijón. On 2 November, he played against Manchester United in the Champions League, and Jordi set up the first goal for Hristo Stoichkov, as Barcelona won 4–0.

However, despite a positive start, Jordi's time at Barcelona effectively came to an end when his father was sacked by Josep Lluís Núñez. On 19 May 1996, he played his last game for the club against Celta Vigo, at the Camp Nou.

[edit] Manchester United

In August 1996, Jordi signed with Manchester United for a fee of £1.4 million. He made his club debut on 17 August, in a 3–0 win over Wimbledon, the opening fixture of the 1996–97 season, in a game noted for David Beckham's goal from his own half. Cruyff then scored on his next two appearances, helping to 2–2 draws against Everton and Blackburn Rovers. Despite missing much of the second half of the season due to a knee injury, he returned towards the end to help United clinch the Premier League title.

An ankle injury in 1998 limited the amount of appearances he made and saw him lose his place in the team. In January 1999, he returned to Spain, loaned to Celta and as a result missed out on Manchester United completing the treble. Cruyff rejoined United for 1999–2000, and helped them win the league once again. However, he failed to establish himself as a first team regular and played his final game for the club on 14 May 2000. Despite being a member of the squad for three Premier League title wins, Cruyff only garnered one winners medal, in 1996–97, due to his limited appearances at the club.

[edit] Later years

On leaving United, Jordi moved once again to Spain, and signed with Deportivo Alavés. With the Basque, he reached the 2001 UEFA Cup Final, an epic match against Liverpool: despite being 2–0 and then 3–1 down, Alavés embarked on a spirited comeback and Jordi's goal in the 89th minute tied the game at 4–4. However, an own goal in extra time saw Liverpool lift the cup.

Jordi continued to play for Alavés until they were relegated at the end of 2002–03. The following season he joined Espanyol, being played regularly in his only season. From 2004 to 2006, he was semi-retired after a serious knee injury, keeping fit with Barcelona B and playing in some veteran matches. Cruyff spent the 2007–08 season playing with Metalurh Donetsk, where he played mainly as a Centre back.^[1] and, at the same time, entered the fashion business, helping develop the Cruyff clothing brand.^[2]

[edit] Valletta

In the summer of 2009, Cruyff signed a three-year deal as assistant-manager of Maltese side Valletta, aiding first coach Ton Kaanen, while also being a player in his first season. He made his debut on 26 July 2009, in a 2–1 win in the Europa League 2009–10 first qualifying round against Keflavík. His league appearance came on 21 August 2008, in a 3–1 win over Birkirkara. He scored his first goal on 29 August 2009 in a 6–0 win against Floriana.

[edit] International career

Cruyff (number 17) playing for Netherlands against Scotland at Villa Park during Euro 96

Cruyff's performances for Barcelona persuaded coach Guus Hiddink to include him in the Netherlands team for Euro 96; subsequently, he made his debut for the national side in a 2–0 defeat against Germany, on a 24 April 1996 friendly.

Cruyff scored his only goal for the Netherlands during the final stages, on 13 June, in a 2–0 win against Switzerland at Villa Park, and would be one of only five Dutch footballers to be selected for the Dutch national team while never having played in the country's topflight, the other capped players being Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Rob Reekers, Willi Lippens and Wim Hofkens.

Additionally, Cruyff also played for Catalonia, scoring on his debut, a 5–2 win over Barcelona at the Nou Estadi de Tarragona, on 25 June 1995. He also scored for Catalonia in a 5–0 win over Lithuania on 22 December 2000, at the Camp Nou. In all, Jordi played nine times for the side, including two games against Brazil in 2002 and 2004.

[edit] Statistics

As of 26 September 2009.^[3]

[edit] Honours

Barcelona

• Supercopa de España: 1995

Manchester United

• FA Premier League: 1996–97
• Intercontinental Cup: 1999
• Charity Shield: 1996, 1997

[edit] Sources

• Barça: A People's Passion (1998), Jimmy Burns.^[4]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• BDFutbol profile
• Jordi Cruyff career stats at Soccerbase
• SportingHeroes profile
• National team data (Dutch)
• Jordi Cruyff profile and stats at Wereld van Oranje (Dutch)
• Jordi Cruyff FIFA competition record

v • d • e Netherlands squad – UEFA Euro 1996 1 Van der Sar • 2 Reiziger • 3 Blind • 4 Seedorf • 5 Stam • 6 R. de Boer • 7 Taument • 8 Davids • 9 Kluivert • 10 Bergkamp • 11 Hoekstra • 12 Winter • 13 Numan • 14 Richard Witschge • 15 Bogarde • 16 De Goey • 17 Cruyff • 18 De Kock • 19 Mulder • 20 Cocu • 21 Hesp • 22 Veldman • Coach: Hiddink