Nigel de Jong is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Italian Serie
A club Milan and the Netherlands national football team.
He joined the Ajax youth academy as a youngster and worked his way through the ranks to make
the first team at age 17.
Two years later, in 2004, he made his international debut.
Additionally, in 2010 he won a World Cup runners-up medal.
De Jong moved on from Ajax in 2006 to join Hamburg in search of first team football and
then moved to Manchester City in January 2009 for an estimated £18 million, where he became
an important part of City's holding midfield.
A tireless grafter, he has garnered a reputation of being a combative and feisty player in
his performances, a reputation that has earned him nicknames such as "The Terrier" and "Lawnmower".
He moved to Italian side Milan in August 2012.
Club career Ajax
On 19 October 2002, De Jong made his debut for the Ajax first team.
He scored his first goal of his senior career on 18 February 2003 in a 1–1 draw against
Arsenal in the Champions League.
He became a first team regular the following season, in which Ajax won the Eredivisie title.
In 2004–05, his last full season in Amsterdam, De Jong was named Ajax Player of the Season.
After a period when he appeared regularly in midfield, he found himself sitting on the
bench more often than being in the starting line-up.
On 7 December 2005, it was announced that De Jong did not wish to extend his contract
with Ajax, which was due to end in July 2006.
Hamburg On 26 January 2006, De Jong signed a four
and a half-year contract at German Bundesliga club Hamburg, the transfer fee approximately
€1 million.
At Hamburg he joined two other Dutchmen: Rafael van der Vaart and Khalid Boulahrouz.
He made his Hamburg debut two days later in a 2–1 defeat at Nuremberg.
In March 2006, De Jong scored the winning goal in Bayern Munich's first ever defeat
at the Allianz Arena.
The following week he received the first red card of his career for a second booking in
a UEFA Cup match against Rapid Bucharest.
His season was cut short in April, when he required surgery on a knee problem.
The injury also kept him out of the Dutch squad for the 2006 World Cup, though he was
later put on standby after regaining fitness.
Manchester City
On 21 January 2009, De Jong was signed to Manchester City for an estimated fee of £18
million by manager Mark Hughes who deployed him in the role of midfield enforcer in a
team whose defence badly needed reinforcement.
He signed a four-and-a-half-year contract.
and was assigned the number 34 shirt.
He made his debut for the club against Newcastle United on 28 January 2009.
He made sixteen appearances in the Premier League over the second half of the season.
De Jong was given a start against Arsenal on 12 September 2009.
He was named Man of the Match by Sky Sports in a 2–1 win over Chelsea on 5 December
2009.
By the end of the season he had become a firm fans' favourite as well as being one of new
manager Roberto Mancini's first picks as defensive midfielder as the team narrowly missed out
on a Champions League berth.
De Jong scored his first goal for Manchester City in a 2–1 victory against West Ham United
on 1 May 2011.
De Jong was a member of the City side which won the 2010–11 FA Cup and the 2011–12
Premier League, making 137 appearances and scoring twice before being sold to A.C. Milan
in August 2012.
Milan On 31 August 2012, De Jong joined Italian
Serie A side Milan for £3.5 million rising to £5 million depending on appearances, signing
a three-year deal.
De Jong scored his first goal for Milan in a 3–2 loss against Lazio on 20 October 2012.
On 4 May 2014, De Jong scored his second goal for Milan, the winning goal against Internazionale
in the Derby della Madonnina at the San Siro.
International career On 31 March 2004, De Jong made his debut with
the Netherlands in a friendly game against France.
He was overlooked for the squad that went to play in UEFA Euro 2004, and missed the
2006 FIFA World Cup with a knee injury.
He was selected by Marco van Basten to play for the Oranje at UEFA Euro 2008.
During the tournament, he was played as a "screening midfielder", partnering with Orlando
Engelaar in central midfield.
This resulted in De Jong playing three out of the four games that saw the Netherlands
reach the quarter-final stage, where they lost to Russia.
De Jong scored his first international goal against Iceland on 6 June 2009 in a 2010 FIFA
World Cup qualifying match, which sealed the Netherlands' passage to the 2010 World Cup.
De Jong was part of the Dutch team for the 2010 FIFA World Cup managed by Bert van Marwijk.
The player was in the starting line-up for their first match in the competition, a 2–0
victory over Denmark.
He was suspended in the semi-final against Uruguay after receiving his second yellow
card of the tournament in the Netherlands' quarter-final win over Brazil.
He played in the Final of the competition, which the Netherlands lost 1–0 to Spain
after extra time.
In the early stages of the match, De Jong made a chest high challenge on Xabi Alonso,
with his studs making contact with the Spaniard's ribs.
Referee Howard Webb later stated that he would have sent off De Jong if he'd had a better
view of the incident.
De Jong was part of the Netherlands UEFA Euro 2012 squad.
The Dutch were eliminated in the first round after losing all three matches.
He was also selected for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, where he was is the starting line-up
for all three group matches.
However, a groin injury led to his substitution in the 9th minute of the Round of 16 match
defeat of Mexico and it was later confirmed the De Jong would be unable to take any further
part in the tournament.
Despite this, he later recovered to play 62 minutes of the semi-final against Argentina.
Scores list Netherlands' tally first.
Style of play
De Jong began his career as a creative midfielder or forward.
At Ajax he played a number of positions, including central midfield and right wing.
De Jong credits his conversion to a defensive-minded player to Huub Stevens, under whom he played
at Hamburg.
His new approach earned him the nickname "der Rasenmäher".
De Jong is typically the most defensively oriented midfielder in his team.
When his team's defenders are in possession of the ball, De Jong will often drop back
towards them to receive it.
Sometimes De Jong is the sole holding midfielder, but often he plays alongside another defensive
player, such as Gareth Barry at Manchester City or Mark van Bommel for the Dutch national
team.
De Jong had the highest passing completion percentage in the Premier League in the 2010–11
season out of the top 50 players.
During an international friendly on 3 March 2010, De Jong fractured the leg of Bolton
Wanderers' American international Stuart Holden as the result of a late challenge, causing
Holden to be sidelined for nearly two seasons.
In the 2010 FIFA World Cup Final he kicked Spanish player Xabi Alonso in the chest, a
challenge for which De Jong admitted he was lucky not to have received a red card.
On 3 October 2010, in a Premier League match against Newcastle United, a tackle by De Jong
on Hatem Ben Arfa resulted in the latter being carried off the pitch with a double fracture
of his left tibia and fibula.
Nigel de Jong was later dropped from the Dutch national team for an unspecified period of
time, but has since been reprieved.
De Jong however has never received a red card during his time at Manchester City.
To date the only red card De Jong has received in his professional career was a sending off
for two bookable offences in a match for Hamburg against Rapid Bucharest in the 2005–06 edition
of the UEFA Cup.
In December 2013, Spanish football website El Gol Digital ranked de Jong at tenth in
its list of the world's dirtiest footballers.
Career statistics Personal life
De Jong is of Surinamese-Indonesian descent; Surinamese parentage from his father and Ambonese
from his mother.
De Jong is married to Winonah, with whom he has two children.
His father is former Dutch international Jerry de Jong.
He owns a specialist car dealership operating in Europe and the Middle East.
Sponsorship Puma SE have a four-year partnership with
De Jong, that commenced in January 2012.
Honours Club
Ajax Eredivisie: 2003–04
KNVB Cup: 2005–06 Johan Cruijff Shield: 2005
Manchester City FA Cup: 2010–11
Premier League: 2011–12 FA Community Shield: 2012
International Netherlands
FIFA World Cup Runner-up: 2010 FIFA World Cup Third Place: 2014
Individual Amsterdam Talent of the Year: 2002
References
External links Nigel de Jong profile and stats at Wereld
van Oranje Nigel de Jong at fussballdaten.de
Nigel de Jong career stats at Soccerbase www.transfermarkt.co.uk
Nigel de Jong at OnsOranje