- Mar 7, 2005
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Source: Wiki
At Ajax he was voted as the club's brightest emerging talent in 2003-04. As a result he made his appearance in Ajax' first team squad for the 2004-05 season, making his debut against Roda JC on February 26, 2005 in a 1-2 away win. Just weeks after his Eredivisie debut he was called up to the national team, making his debut against Romania in March 2005.
As of the 2005-06 season he became a first team regular and he won his first career trophies, starting with the 2005 Johan Cruijff-schaal and the 2006 KNVB Cup.
He was called up for the 2006 FIFA World Cup and featured in one match against Argentina. Both the Johan Cruijff-schaal and the KNVB Cup were successfully defended in the 2006-07 season.
Despite already having amassed 12 senior caps, in 2007 he took part in the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship in the Netherlands, and also scored the competition's first goal when Jong Oranje beat Israel 1-0. He also played in their second match against Portugal (2-1 win) to secure a semi final spot and to qualify for the 2008 Summer Olympics. In the semi finals against England the score was 1-1 after 120 minutes, in the following penalty shoothout with 32 kicks taken, the Dutch reached their second straight final winning the shootout 13-12. The Dutch went on to retain their 2006 title by beating Serbia 4-1 in the final. After the tournament he was named in the 'UEFA Team of the tournament'.
The Johan Cruijff-schaal was won for the third consecutive time at the start of the 2007-08 season.
At Ajax he was voted as the club's brightest emerging talent in 2003-04. As a result he made his appearance in Ajax' first team squad for the 2004-05 season, making his debut against Roda JC on February 26, 2005 in a 1-2 away win. Just weeks after his Eredivisie debut he was called up to the national team, making his debut against Romania in March 2005.
As of the 2005-06 season he became a first team regular and he won his first career trophies, starting with the 2005 Johan Cruijff-schaal and the 2006 KNVB Cup.
He was called up for the 2006 FIFA World Cup and featured in one match against Argentina. Both the Johan Cruijff-schaal and the KNVB Cup were successfully defended in the 2006-07 season.
Despite already having amassed 12 senior caps, in 2007 he took part in the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship in the Netherlands, and also scored the competition's first goal when Jong Oranje beat Israel 1-0. He also played in their second match against Portugal (2-1 win) to secure a semi final spot and to qualify for the 2008 Summer Olympics. In the semi finals against England the score was 1-1 after 120 minutes, in the following penalty shoothout with 32 kicks taken, the Dutch reached their second straight final winning the shootout 13-12. The Dutch went on to retain their 2006 title by beating Serbia 4-1 in the final. After the tournament he was named in the 'UEFA Team of the tournament'.
The Johan Cruijff-schaal was won for the third consecutive time at the start of the 2007-08 season.