In this article, Dutch capitalization is used fortussenvoegsels inDutch family names. The first letter in Van der Sar is capitalized unless it is preceded by a name, initial or title of nobility.
Edwin van der Sar (Dutch pronunciation:[ˈɛtʋɪɱvɑndərˈsɑr]ⓘ; born 29 October 1970) is a Dutchfootball executive and former professional player who played as agoalkeeper. Widely regarded as one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time, he was most recently the chief executive ofAjax, with whom he began his senior playing career in the early 1990s; he is considered to be a member of the club'sgolden generation and was part of the Ajax team that won theUEFA Champions League in1995. In 1999, he left Ajax forJuventus where he spent two years before moving to England, first toFulham and then toManchester United in 2005. There he won a second Champions League title in2008, making him one of just eight players at the time to have won the competition with more than one club. He retired as a professional in 2011, but briefly came out of retirement in 2016 to play a match for Dutch amateur teamVV Noordwijk, for whom he had previously played as a youth. He played 130 times for theNetherlands national team, and was the nation's most-capped player until 2017, when he was overtaken byWesley Sneijder.
Van der Sar is considered by critics and fellow players as one of the best goalkeepers of all time.[5][6][7][8][9] He is also one of the most successful footballers ever, having won 26 major trophies in his career, mainly at Ajax and Manchester United.[10] During the2008–09 season, he set a world record by not conceding a league goal for 1,311 minutes.[11] He is also theoldest player to win thePremier League, having done so in 2011 at the age of 40 years and 205 days. Van der Sar has won several individual awards, includingBest European Goalkeeper in 1995 and 2009, andUEFA Club Goalkeeper of the Year in 2009.
Born inVoorhout, Van der Sar began his career at his hometown club, Foreholte, and thenVV Noordwijk. At a relatively late age, he was brought to the attention ofLouis van Gaal, and subsequently signed forAjax. Even though he joined late he went into the reserve team and bided his time before getting his first-team call-up by Louis van Gaal. He enjoyed a long and successful stint in their senior side, winning the1991–92 UEFA Cup (albeit only as the reserve, making no appearances in the run) and the1994–95 UEFA Champions League (by now the starting goalkeeper),[12] as well as the 1995Best European Goalkeeper award, besides domestic honours. He was in goal for Ajax in the1996 UEFA Champions League Final, but had to make do with a runner-up medal as they lost the penalty shoot-out againstJuventus.[12] He made a total of 226 appearances for Ajax, and scored a penalty for Ajax to complete an 8–1 victory overDe Graafschap in the 1997–98 season. In his first full season as Ajax No. 1 he won theDutch Football Goalkeeper of the Year, he would then go on to retain the award for the next three consecutive years.
In 1999, Van der Sar's stature as one of Europe's top goalkeepers drew attention fromManchester United, who sought a replacement forPeter Schmeichel; however, Van der Sar moved to Italian clubJuventus for a fee believed to be in the region of £5 million. He made his debut for The Old Lady in the 1–1 draw with Reggina at theStadio delle Alpi.[13] He became the first non-Italian to keep goal for the Turin club.[14]
He was the first-choice goalkeeper during his first two seasons in Italy, making 66Serie A appearances as Juventus finished runners-up in the league twice underCarlo Ancelotti, with the best defensive record in the league on each occasion.[15] He performed well in his first season, winning the1999 UEFA Intertoto Cup, and helping the club compete for the Serie A title.[16] On the final day of the 1999–2000 season, however, Juventus lost toPerugia, after Van der Sar was beaten byAlessandro Calori's volley; the result allowedLazio to overtake Juventus and win the league title by a single point.[17][18] The following season was less successful, however, as Juventus suffered a first-round exit in both theCoppa Italia and theChampions League, while Van der Sar committed several errors, including a high-profile one in a league fixture at home against eventual Serie A championsRoma, on 6 May 2001, when he spilledHidetoshi Nakata's shot, allowingVincenzo Montella to tie the game 2–2;[19][20] Juventus eventually finished two points behind the league champions.[21]
Van der Sar lost his place in the summer of 2001, after the Bianconeri purchased Italian international goalkeeperGianluigi Buffon from Parma for 100 billion lire (approximately £32.6 million), a world-record fee for a goalkeeper. Unwilling to remain as second-choice behind Buffon, Van der Sar made it clear he wished to move on after two years in Serie A.[22]
On 1 August 2001, Van der Sar opted to play in England and joined newly promotedFulham in a shock move worth £7 million, signing a four-year contract.[23][24] The following day, Van der Sar was officially unveiled by Fulham, and upon his arrival, he described the move as a "nice friendly atmosphere" and that he felt "appreciated".[25] He made his league debut on 18 August 2001 in a 2–3 away defeat againstManchester United.[26] In total, he notched up 127 league appearances while at Fulham. In a game againstAston Villa in his final season at the club, he memorably saved two penalties fromJuan Pablo Ángel in a 1–1 draw.[27] His performances for the Cottagers caught the eye of Manchester United and the attention ofSir Alex Ferguson.[28][29]
Van der Sar signed forManchester United on 10 June 2005[30] for a reported fee of £2 million, although the exact transfer fee was undisclosed.[31] Former Manchester United managerSir Alex Ferguson considers him the best goalkeeper to have played for the club sincePeter Schmeichel.[32]
Van der Sar in action for Manchester United.
On 5 May 2007, his penalty save fromDarius Vassell helped assure a 1–0 triumph overManchester City in theManchester derby. The following day,Chelsea's failure to beatArsenal at theEmirates ensured Manchester United's ninth Premier League trophy and Van der Sar's first. He was also named in the 2006–07PFA Team of the Year.[33] Three months later, he was a catalyst in Manchester United's 16thFA Community Shield victory, as he saved three consecutive penalties in ashoot-out after Manchester United andChelsea played to a 1–1 draw at the end of regular time.[34]
The 2007–08 season was Van der Sar's best season since his arrival; he had several great performances despite a niggling groin injury. He would help United secure their second successive Premier League title on the final day and win theChampions League by saving the final penalty of the shoot-out fromNicolas Anelka.[35]
Van der Sar signed a one-year extension to his contract with Manchester United on 12 December 2008, keeping him at the club until at least the end of the 2009–10 season.[36]
On 27 January 2009, Van der Sar helped Manchester United set a new club and Premier League record for consecutive clean sheets – the club's 5–0 win overWest Bromwich Albion meant that they had gone 11 games and 1,032 minutes without conceding a goal, beating the previous record of 10 matches and 1,025 minutes set byPetr Čech in the 2004–05 season. He then broke the overall English league record in the club's following game four days later, beating the previous record of 1,103 minutes, set bySteve Death ofReading in 1979.[37] Another clean sheet, against West Ham on 8 February 2009, extended the record to 1,212 minutes, beating the British top-flight record of 1,155 minutes previously set byAberdeen'sBobby Clark in 1971.[38] Finally, on 18 February 2009, Van der Sar further extended the record to 1,302 minutes, and in doing so, he brokeJosé María Buljubasich's single-season world record of 1,289 minutes, set in theChileanClausura in 2005.[39][40] His clean sheet record ended on 4 March, when he made an error allowingPeter Løvenkrands ofNewcastle United to score after nine minutes.[41] In total, Van der Sar had gone 1,311 minutes without conceding in the league.[35] These clean sheets were a major factor in United clinching their 11th Premiership title, as United won a lot of games 1–0 to clinch the title ahead of Liverpool. With a total of 21 clean sheets he also won thePremier League Golden Glove for 2008–09.[42] However, he missed out on winning his third Champions League winners medal as United succumbed to a 2–0 defeat at the hands ofBarcelona in thefinal of the tournament on 27 May 2009.[43] Nevertheless, he wonBest European Goalkeeper award from UEFA for the second time, 14 years after he first won it atAjax. He was one of the five United players shortlisted for thePFA Players' Player of the Year award, which was ultimately given to his United teammateRyan Giggs; however, Van der Sar was named in thePFA Team of the Year.[44]
Van der Sar sustained a finger injury during theAudi Cup pre-season tournament, forcing him to miss the first 12 matches of Manchester United's 2009–10 season.[45] On 6 October 2009, Van der Sar returned to action for United, playing 90 minutes in the reserves againstEverton.[46] On 17 October 2009, he returned to action in the first team, playing in United's 2–1 victory overBolton Wanderers.[47] On 21 November 2009, Van der Sar would suffer injury again and be kept out of action for 12 games, with the combination of the Dutchman's wife suffering a brain haemorrhage just before Christmas. On 16 January 2010, Van der Sar returned to action in a 3–0 win overBurnley.[48]
Van der Sar signed a one-year extension to his current contract withManchester United on 26 February 2010, keeping him at the club until at least the end of the 2010–11 season.[49]
Van der Sar playing for Manchester United during the 2010–11 season
On 23 December 2010, British press reported that Sir Alex Ferguson had confirmed Van der Sar would retire at the end of the2010–11 Premier League season.[50] Although he denied the reports at the time,[50] Van der Sar confirmed on 27 January 2011 it was now his intention.[51] On 12 March, Van der Sar was named Man of the Match against Arsenal in the FA Cup after making several fine saves. United won the match 2–0 with goals fromWayne Rooney andFabio. He was included in thePFA Team of the Year, making his third appearance there, others in 2007 and 2008.
On 22 May 2011, he played his final game at Old Trafford in a 4–2 victory overBlackpool, resulting in Blackpool's relegation from the Premier League. He captained United as a farewell treat.[52] His last game for United was againstBarcelona in the2011 UEFA Champions League Final on 28 May, which United lost 3–1; at 40 years, 211 days he was the oldest male player to feature in a European Cup final in the Champions League era,[53] withDino Zoff holding the all-time record at 41 years, 86 days, when he appeared in the1983 European Cup Final.[54] Following the match, Van der Sar retired from active football.[55]
Van der Sar was included in theNetherlands'1994 World Cup squad but did not play. He had to wait until 7 June 1995 for his international debut, againstBelarus. He was in goal for three successive eliminations from major competitions bypenalties:Euro 96, the1998 World Cup andEuro 2000. The Netherlands failed to qualify for the2002 World Cup after competing withPortugal and theRepublic of Ireland and so during all of his career with the Netherlands, he had missed one tournament.
Van der Sar backstopped the Netherlands to the semi-finals of the1998 FIFA World Cup, where they were eliminated by Brazil 4–2 on penalties after a 1–1 draw. In the third-place playoff, Netherlands lost to upstart Croatia 2–1.
In the quarter-finals against Argentina, Van der Sar confrontedAriel Ortega after Ortega received a yellow card for a dive in the penalty area; the Argentine was then sent off for headbutting Van der Sar. Shortly after Ortega's red card,Dennis Bergkamp scored the winning goal in Netherlands' 2–1 victory.
Van der Sar started the Netherlands' first two group games atUEFA Euro 2000, but suffered an injury in the closing stages of their 3–0 win overDenmark and was replaced bySander Westerveld for the final group match againstFrance. Van der Sar returned for the quarter-finals, but was again replaced by Westerveld after 65 minutes, by which point the Netherlands had a 4–0 lead. Van der Sar kept another clean sheet in the semi-final againstItaly, resulting in a goalless draw afterFrank de Boer andPatrick Kluivert both failed to score from the penalty spot in regulation time. The match went to a penalty shoot-out, and although Van der Sar saved the effort from Italy captainPaolo Maldini, the Netherlands scored just one of their four kicks and lost 3–1.[56] Van der Sar finished the tournament without conceding a single goal, but was left out of the Team of the Tournament in favour of France'sFabien Barthez and Italy'sFrancesco Toldo.[57]
During the penalty shoot-out after theEuro 2004 quarter-final againstSweden, Van der Sar saved a penalty fromOlof Mellberg, as the Netherlands won the shoot-out 5–4 and advanced to the semi-finals,[58] where they lost to hostsPortugal.[59]
Van der Sar in training with the Netherlands prior to Euro 2008.
On his 37th birthday, Van der Sar was interviewed byRadio 538 and stated that he intended to retire from international football afterEuro 2008.[62] Prior to the tournament, he was instrumental in bringing an end to a long-time dispute between veteran strikerRuud van Nistelrooy and managerMarco van Basten.[63] He was the captain in their impressive 3–0 victory over Italy on 9 June 2008, and also on 13 June for the 4–1 victory over France. On 21 June, he played in the 3–1quarter-final loss againstRussia, which was believed to be his final international.[64] This was his 16th appearance in a European Championship finals match, with which he equalled the record set byLilian Thuram a few days earlier. Along with 22 other players Van der Sar was named in the team of the tournament.[35] Following Euro 2008, Van der Sar had the distinction of playing more minutes at theEuropean Football Championship than any other player.[65]
On 3 October 2008, at the urging of new coachBert van Marwijk, Van der Sar agreed to come out of international retirement for the Netherlands'2010 FIFA World Cup qualification matches againstIceland andNorway after injuries toMaarten Stekelenburg andHenk Timmer made both unavailable for the two games.[66] Van der Sar kept a clean sheet in both matches, which were won by the Dutch 2–0 and 1–0 respectively. In Oslo, the Dutch defeatedNorway 1–0 courtesy of aMark van Bommel goal, thus ensuring a fitting send-off for Van der Sar who earned his 130th cap during that match, a record for a Dutch player, and put him in the top fortymost capped players of all time.[67] He remained the Dutch team's most capped player untilWesley Sneijder surpassed him in 2017.[68]
"I do not think I was the main protagonist. One of the very first to have brought a new perspective was Edwin van der Sar, who played a lot with his feet and allowed the position to enter a new phase. I was inspired by his style of play."
German goalkeeperManuel Neuer has praised Van der Sar for being among the first to bring a new perspective to goalkeeping[69]
Regarded as one of the greatest and most complete keepers in football history,[5][6] Van der Sar was a large, athletic, yet slender goalkeeper, who excelled at coming off his line to handle crosses due to his height and physique; an intelligent goalkeeper, in addition to his reflexes, excellent positional sense, and shot-stopping abilities, he was also known for his calm composure, longevity, and his ability to organise his defence.[6][19][70][71][72][73] Furthermore, he was also effective at stopping penalties.[74][75][76][77] Van der Sar was known in particular for his skill with the ball at his feet, as well as his accurate distribution with either foot, which gave him the ability to launch counter-attacks from his area with long balls,[70][71][72][78] or build attacking plays by playing the ball out from the back on the ground.[18] Due to his ability in possession of the ball, and to rush off his line, he also functioned as a "sweeper-keeper" on occasion throughout his career, in particular during his time with Ajax.[72][79]
The viewership numbers in the Netherlands alone peaked at 2 million and it had a 26% total market share.[80] The income generated by the match was to be donated to two charities (Make a Wish Foundation and Laureus);[81] it generated so much money, however, that Van der Sar announced afterwards he would be starting his own charitable foundation to help spend the money.[82]
During the event, it was announced that Van der Sar would be working as an analyst for theNederlandse Omroep Stichting covering the2011–12 UEFA Champions League.[83] Van der Sar's son, Joe, made written comments stating his father would be working as a goalkeeping coach at Ajax within five years. Van der Sar himself said he did not want to make a full commitment to this, but confirmed it was likely and he was interested in building up his coaching career slowly, starting at the lower levels.[84]
On 27 May 2012, Van der Sar participated in the Soccer Aid 2012 Match, playing for the Rest of the World side in the first half, making a full-length save fromJohn Bishop. He was replaced at half-time by comedianPatrick Kielty. He also took part in the Soccer Aid 2014 match on 8 June 2014, again playing for the Rest of the World side in the first half before being once again replaced at half time by Patrick Kielty.
Van der Sar took on a role as Ajax's marketing director on 19 November 2012.[85] He was promoted in late 2016 to the role of CEO.[86]
On 12 March 2016, Van der Sar made a brief return to football to play a single match for his former youth clubVV Noordwijk. Noordwijk, playing in the amateurfifth tier, had suffered an injury crisis. He saved a penalty and conceded a goal in the match as they drew 1–1 withJodan Boys.[87]
Van der Sar and his wife Annemarie van Kesteren have two children.[89] The couple's wedding ceremony took place at theBeurs van Berlage inAmsterdam, on 20 May 2006.[90] Van der Sar's son,Joe, was on the pitch celebrating when his father saved a penalty in the Netherlands' 5–4 shoot-out victory overSweden in the quarter-finals ofUEFA Euro 2004.[89] In December 2009, Van Kesteren was admitted to the hospital just two days before Christmas,[91] reports said she had suffered a suspectedbrain haemorrhage and was in a "very poor" condition.[92] Van der Sar was granted indefinite leave following his wife's collapse, and it is understood that she has made a good recovery, with no long-term effects.[93]
In July 2023, Van der Sar was admitted to intensive care in hospital after suffering abrain haemorrhage.[94] He was discharged from the unit two weeks later.[95]
^ab"2. Finals"(PDF).UEFA Champions League Statistics Handbook 2016/17. Nyon, Switzerland: Union of European Football Associations. 2017. p. 1. Retrieved22 April 2017.
^Cheese, Caroline (5 August 2007)."Chelsea 1-1 Man Untd".BBC Sport. Retrieved24 October 2017.
^Dore, Matteo (14 March 2001)."Buffon e Van der Sar maestri con i piedi" [Buffon and Van der Sar masters with their feet] (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. Retrieved23 May 2014.
