Ryan Koolwijk

Ryan Koolwijk
Koolwijk with Excelsior in 2017
Personal information
Date of birth (1985-08-08) 8 August 1985 (age 39)
Place of birth Rotterdam, Netherlands
Height 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in)[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Suriname (assistant)
ADO Den Haag (U19 assistant)
Youth career
VV Lekkerkerk[2]
Excelsior
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2007–2011 Excelsior 114 (10)
2011–2014 NEC 86 (5)
2014 Dordrecht 9 (2)
2015–2016 AS Trenčín 43 (6)
2016–2019 Excelsior 92 (7)
2019–2020 AS Trenčín 20 (2)
2020–2021 Almere City 38 (1)
2021–2022 PEC Zwolle 9 (0)
2022–2024 Smitshoek
Total 411+ (33+)
International career
2021–2022 Suriname[3] 7 (0)
Managerial career
2022– Suriname (assistant)
2024– ADO Den Haag (U19 assistant)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Ryan Koolwijk (born 8 August 1985) is a professional football manager and former player who is the assistant coach of the Suriname national team and the ADO Den Haag under-19 team.

During his playing career, he played for Excelsior, NEC, Dordrecht, AS Trenčín, Almere City, and PEC Zwolle. Born in the Netherlands, he represented the Suriname national team.

Club career

Born in Rotterdam, Koolwijk began his senior career with Excelsior during the 2007–08 season. He signed for NEC in May 2011.[4] He also played for Dordrecht and AS Trenčín,[1][5] before returning to Excelsior in May 2016.[6] He returned to Trenčín in June 2019 and became a regular in the team's starting eleven.[7] In April 2020, when the Fortuna Liga was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the country, Koolwijk ended his contract with the club by mutual agreement, as he intended to spend more time with his family in the Netherlands and he was dissatisfied by the proposed salary cut of over 50%, due to the pandemic.[8] He signed with Almere City in May 2020.[9]

He signed for PEC Zwolle in September 2021.[10] After a season, which ended with relegation to the 2022–23 Eerste Divisie, 36-year old Koolwijk announced his retirement from professional football, as he had accepted a job offer as assistant coach of the Suriname national team.[11]

At age 36, Koolwijk opted to continue playing and joined Smitshoek in the Vierde Divisie ahead of the 2022–23 season, encouraged by friend Luigi Bruins, who highlighted the club's positive environment.[12][13] Koolwijk spent two seasons at Smitshoek before retiring from playing in June 2024 to focus on his coaching career.[14][15]

International career

Born in the Netherlands, Koolwijk is of Surinamese descent.[16] He debuted with the Suriname national team in a 6–0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification win over Bermuda on 4 June 2021.[17] On 25 June Koolwijk was named to the Suriname squad for the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup.[18]

Coaching career

Koolwijk retired as a professional player in 2022, and became an assistant coach of the Suriname national team.[11]

He continued to play in the lower leagues, and after retiring from playing in 2024, Koolwijk was appointed assistant coach of ADO Den Haag's under-19s.[14][15]

Career statistics

As of match played 14 May 2017 [1]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Excelsior 2007–08 Eredivisie 7 0 0 0 0 0 7 0
2008–09 Eerste Divisie 37 3 1 0 2[a] 0 40 3
2009–10 37 6 1 0 4[a] 0 42 6
2010–11 Eredivisie 33 1 2 0 4[b] 2 39 3
Total 114 10 4 0 10 2 128 12
N.E.C. 2011–12 Eredivisie 35 0 4 0 0 0 39 0
2012–13 31 4 1 0 0 0 32 4
2013–14 22 1 4 0 2 1 28 2
Total 88 5 9 0 2 1 99 6
Dordrecht 2014–15 Eredivisie 9 2 2 1 0 0 11 3
Trenčín 2014–15 Slovak First Football League 13 1 3 1 0 0 16 2
2015–16 30 5 6 3 2[c] 0 38 8
Total 43 6 9 4 2 0 54 10
Excelsior 2016–17 Eredivisie 32 2 2 0 0 0 34 2
2017–18 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 32 2 2 0 0 0 34 2
Career total 286 25 26 5 14 3 326 33
  1. ^ a b Appearances in the Eerste Divisie promotion play-offs
  2. ^ Appearances in the Eredivisie relegation play-offs
  3. ^ Appearances in the Europa League

References

  1. ^ a b c Ryan Koolwijk at Soccerway. Retrieved 28 May 2016.
  2. ^ v.v. Lekkerkerk door de jaren heen, vvlekkerkerk.nl
  3. ^ "Ryan Koolwijk". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  4. ^ Yorick Hokke (2 May 2011). "Ryan Koolwijk na dit seizoen naar NEC" (in Dutch). Goal.com. Archived from the original on 17 March 2012. Retrieved 26 June 2011.
  5. ^ "Profile" (in Dutch). Voetbal International. Retrieved 27 September 2014.
  6. ^ "Excelsior troeft twee Eredivisie-clubs af en heeft beet bij clubjongen". www.voetbalprimeur.nl.
  7. ^ VoetbalRotterdam, Redactie (26 June 2019). "Ryan Koolwijk tekent bij AS Trencin -".
  8. ^ s, SPORT SK, s r o & Ringier Axel Springer Slovakia a. "Zachráňte futbalistu Ryana. Koolwijk sa dohodol na predčasnom ukončení zmluvy s Trenčínom". Šport.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 12 May 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ "Almere City FC lijft ervaren Ryan Koolwijk in" (in Dutch). Almere City FC. 20 May 2020. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  10. ^ "Koolwijk en Fernandes tekenen bij PEC: "De spoeling werd erg dun"". RTV Oost.
  11. ^ a b Ryan Koolwijk stopt met voetballen en vindt nieuwe uitdaging: 'Deze kans moet ik grijpen', rijnmond.nl, 12 May 2022
  12. ^ "Ryan Koolwijk volgt voetbalvriend naar Smitshoek". VV Smitshoek (in Dutch). 4 July 2022. Archived from the original on 1 October 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2024.
  13. ^ Maten, Jeffrey van der (29 August 2022). "Koolwijk maakt overstap naar amateurs: 'Derde helft? Kan niveau van nieuwe ploeggenoten niet bijbenen'". Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 November 2024.
  14. ^ a b Oevelen, Wesley van (23 June 2024). "Met de veertig in zicht gaat Koolwijk zich op het trainersvak richten: 'Had nog jaren kunnen doorgaan'". Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 November 2024.
  15. ^ a b Beije, Ton (24 June 2024). "Ryan Koolwijk komend seizoen assistent-trainer bij ADO Den Haag O19". Haaglanden Voetbal (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 17 July 2024. Retrieved 10 November 2024.
  16. ^ Gayadien, Gepost door Rajesh. "Ryan Koolwijk kijkt uit naar trip naar Suriname". Archived from the original on 13 December 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  17. ^ "FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ Qualifiers - North, Central America and Caribbean - Matches - Suriname - Bermuda". www.fifa.com. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021.
  18. ^ Surinamese Football Federation [@OfficialSVB1920] (25 June 2021). "The 23 That Will Represent Us At The CONCACAF Gold Cup" (Tweet). Retrieved 12 July 2021 – via Twitter.