Andy van der Meyde

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Andy van der Meyde bigraphy, stories - Dutch footballer

Andy van der Meyde : biography

30 September 1979 –

Andy van der Meijde, anglicised to van der Meyde ( born 30 September 1979) is a retired Dutch footballer who played as a winger.

After making a name for himself at Ajax, he went on to represent Inter Milan and Everton, his spell at the latter club being cut short due to several problems, both on and off the pitch.

A Dutch international in the early 2000s, Van der Meyde appeared for his country at Euro 2004.

Personal life

Van der Meyde was married, a relationship from which he has two daughters.

In November 2012, following the publication of his biography Geen genade (English: No Mercy), Van der Meyde gave a series of media interviews, including with The Times in England, in which he admitted to a long term series of personal problems: after a difficult first year in Milan he spent a long time on the bench in his second year, and began drinking. Offered the chance to join AS Monaco FC at the end of the season his wife, who liked to keep animals, rejected the prospect of living in an apartment, so he joined Everton. When he joined the club he was injured, but after regaining fitness he played regularly for a period, before getting injured against Manchester United; in rehabilitation for six months, after his newly born daughter was hospitalised for six months, he again turned to alcohol.

In his second year at Everton, Van der Meyde’s wife and daughters returned to the Netherlands to enable his youngest child to gain more hospital treatment with family support. He then began an affair, which after denying this for a period to his wife, was discovered after she paid a private detective to follow him; this resultantly lead to his divorce, and also a break-up with his girlfriend.

After having his contract terminated with Everton at the end of the fourth season due to recurring injury, personal problems, and falling out with manager David Moyes, Van der Meyde stayed resident in Liverpool for a year. Moving in with a friend he began a downward spiral of drink, excessive gambling and drug taking, including cocaine.

Realising his now depressive state, Van der Meyde agreed with his agent to return to Amsterdam, who negotiated a training agreement with former club Ajax. This allowed him to turn around his life, and regain contact with his ex-wife and daughters.

International career

On 19 May 2002 Van der Meyde was handed his debut for Dick Advocaat’s Dutch national team against the United States, which he marked with a goal in a 2–0 win.

In the summer of 2004 Van der Meyde helped Holland reach the semi-finals of UEFA Euro 2004, featuring in four games – all starts – and assisting Ruud van Nistelrooy in the 1–1 group stage draw against Germany, but being overlooked for the last-four match against Portugal. Since the tournament, following Marco van Basten’s appointment as national team manager and the emergence of youngsters as Arjen Robben, Robin van Persie and Rafael van der Vaart, he failed to receive another callup, finishing his international career with 17 caps.

International goals

Andy van der Meyde: International goals
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 19 May 2002 CMGI Field USA}} 1–0 2–0 Friendly

Club career

Ajax

Born in Arnhem, Gelderland, Van der Meyde signed for AFC Ajax as a youngster, and made his first team debut aged just 18, helping his side to a 1–0 win against FC Twente on 12 November 1997. In 1999, in order to gain first-team experience, he was loaned to Twente for one season, and was an undisputed starter for a team that finished sixth in the Eredivisie.

It would be in the 2001–02 season that Van der Meyde established himself as first-choice at Ajax. After a turbulent start, Ronald Koeman was instated as head coach, and the player became an integral part in the rebuilding of the team, making the right-winger position his own. The season ended in huge success as the Amsterdam outfit conquered the double, with him scoring five times in the league.