Here are some facts you need to know about Ronald Koeman
Ronald Koeman is a former Dutch center-back/mid-fielder born on 21 March 1963 in Zaandam, Netherlands. His father’s name is Martin Koeman and mother is Marijke Koeman. He has a brother – Erwin Koeman.
Childhood
Ronald Koeman’s father, Martin, was himself a local and international football player. His older brother, Erwin Koeman, also became an international player. The brothers were teammates in a few international matches.
He worked part-time as a butcher and had played only one international game for his national team. Both the brothers developed a keen interest in the game.
Ronald started playing football at a bigger level in his mid-teenage years, when he joined some local football teams. Soon, he was signed by the local club ‘FC Groningen.’
Career
At the age of 17, Ronald Koeman made his professional debut with the local club ‘FC Groningen’ and became the third-youngest player ever to play for the team. During his first three seasons with the club, he scored 33 goals in the 90 games that he played.
In 1983–1984, during Ronald’s first season with Ajax, the team lost the league title. Two years later, Ronald was transferred to ‘PSV Eindhoven.’ The the team ended up winning the ‘Eredivisie’ title for three consecutive seasons.
In 1988, ‘PSV’ also won a ‘European Cup,’ which was a rare feat. In 1989, he signed with Barcelona, and in his first season with the team, he led them to win the ‘Copa del Rey.’ Barca ended up becoming one of the best football clubs.
With Koeman on “The Dream Team,” the club won four consecutive La Liga trophies since 1991. In 1992, he scored the only goal of the final match to help ‘Barcelona’ secure the ‘European Cup’ title.
In the UEFA Champions League of 1993–1994, Ronald emerged as the joint top goal-scorer, with 8 goals. He also became the record holder for successfully turning 25 penalty kicks into goals during the season.
After appearing in almost 200 matches for Barca, he returned to the Netherlands and joined the team ‘Feyenoord.’ Before retiring from club football in 1997, he had become the first defender to score 193 goals in all the league matches that he played.
Koeman made his international debut in 1983, in a friendly game against Sweden. The same year, he scored his first international goal against Iceland. After an impressive performance, the Dutch team won the Euro cup in 1988, which was the team’s only major trophy.
He represented his national team in the 1990 and 1994 ‘World Cups’ and in the 1992 ‘Euro.’ In the 78 games that he played for his national team, Ronald scored 14 goals.
Awards & Achievemetns
- 1X UEFA EURO
- 2X EUROPEAN CHAMPION CLUBS’ CUP (UCL)
- 4X LA LIGA
- 1X COPA DEL REY
- 3X SPANISH SUPER CUP
- 4X EREDIVISIE
- 3X DUTCH CUP
- 1X UEFA SUPERCUP
Personal Life
Ronald Koeman married Bartina in December 1985. The couple has two children. Their son, Ronald Koeman Jr., also became a footballer.
He has been associated with an anti-smoking campaign called ‘Kick it with Help,’ after his wife and one of his best friends suffered from cancer.