JAAP STAM

'Jakob ("Jaap") Stam' (born July 17 1972 in Kampen in the Netherlands) is a Dutch football player, currently playing for Ajax. His nickname is ''De rots van Kampen'' (The rock of Kampen). He was voted best defender in the 1999 and 2000 UEFA Champions League. ^[1]

Contents

Biography

Titles

Statistics

External links

References

Biography

Stam started his career with local amateur football club DOS Kampen. On August 15, 1992, Stam made his professional debut for FC Zwolle in a 1-1 draw against SC Heracles in the Eerste Divisie. He became a first team regular right away and moved to Eredivisie side Cambuur Leeuwarden for the following season, but relegated in his first season which brought him back into the Eerste Divisie. Two seasons at Cambuur earned him a transfer to Eredivisie side Willem II. At Willem II he impressed at the Eredivisie level straight away, which meant his final breakthrough. A shock 1-0 home victory over Ajax led to Stam's transfer to PSV Eindhoven in the same season in which they eventually won the KNVB Cup, his first official throphy. Before he won the cup Stam made his debut for Holland on April 24 1996, in the 1-0 defeat to Germany.
At the beginning of the 1996-97 season he won his second trophy when PSV won the Johan Cruijff-schaal. They went on to win the Eredivisie Championship that season. Stam was a key player and won the VVCS Footballer of the Year award. Later in 1997 he won his second Johan Cruijff-schaal. He was an important player in the Dutch team that finished fourth in the 1998 FIFA World Cup and became the then most expensive Dutch football player in history and the most expensive defender in history, when Manchester United bought him for ƒ36m. Stam spent three seasons at Manchester United and won three Premierships, one FA Cup, the Intercontinental Cup and the UEFA Champions League while with them. Inbetween he reached another semi finals with the Dutch team at Euro 2000 hosted in his home country and Belgium. Stam missed an important kick in the penalty shootout in the semi-finals, which led to defeat against Italy.
During the 2001-02 season, Stam was controversially sold to S.S. Lazio in Italy, after Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson was reportedly furious with allegations Stam had made in his autobiography ''Head to Head''. The hasty exit left Ferguson with a defensive dilemma as the defence was built around the prolific Stam, Roy Keane oftentimes had to drop back from his midfield position to fill his departure. Stam's only goal during his United career was the sixth goal in a 6-2 victory away to Leicester City FC at Filbert Street.
During his time with Lazio, Stam was found guilty of having the banned steroid nandrolone in his system following a Serie A game, and received a 5-month ban, which was eventually reduced by a month after appeals. In his last season at the club he won the Coppa d'Italia before reaching his third semi finals in an international competition with his nation during Euro 2004 in Portugal and retired from international football after the tournament. In total he has played 67 matches for the Netherlands, scoring 3 goals.
The reason for his international retirement was that he wanted to focus on his new team AC Milan and his family. No trophies were won in Milan and on January 30, 2006 it was announced that he would return to the Eredivisie and play for Ajax, where he signed a two-year contract. This came as a surprise to many, as it was expected he would return to either his former club PSV Eindhoven, or SC Heerenveen. He was immediately named team captain upon his arrival in Amsterdam. In his first season he won both the Johan Cruijff-schaal and the KNVB Cup, and another Johan Cruijff-schaal was added at the start of the 2007-08 season.

Titles

★ 1996: KNVB Cup, Johan Cruijff-schaal

★ 1997: Eredivisie, Johan Cruijff-schaal, Dutch Player of the Year

★ 1999: UEFA Champions League, Premier League, FA Cup, Intercontinental Cup

★ 2000: Premier League

★ 2001: Premier League

★ 2004: Coppa Italia

★ 2006: Johan Cruijff-schaal

★ 2007: KNVB Cup, Johan Cruijff-schaal

Statistics

Season	Club	Competition	Apps	Goals	-	Season	Club	Competition	Apps	Goals
1992/93	FC Zwolle	Eerste Divisie	32	1		2000/01	Manchester United	FA Premier League	16	0
1993/94	Cambuur Leeuwarden	Eredivisie	33	0		2001/02	Manchester United	FA Premier League	1	0
1994/95	Cambuur Leeuwarden	Eerste Divisie	33	4		2001/02	Lazio	Serie A	13	1
1995/96	Willem II	Eredivisie	19	1		2002/03	Lazio	Serie A	28	0
1995/96	PSV Eindhoven	Eredivisie	14	1		2003/04	Lazio	Serie A	29	2
1996/97	PSV Eindhoven	Eredivisie	33	6		2004/05	AC Milan	Serie A	17	0
1997/98	PSV Eindhoven	Eredivisie	29	4		2005/06	AC Milan	Serie A	25	1
1998/99	Manchester United	FA Premier League	30	1		2006/07	Ajax	Eredivisie	25	1
1999/00	Manchester United	FA Premier League	33	0		2007/08	Ajax	Eredivisie	1	0
Total									411	23

External links

★ FootballDatabase provides Jaap Stam's profile and stats

★ Official Ajax profile

★ Jaap Stam Official Website at Icons.com

★ Voetbal International profile

References

1. UEFA Super Cup, uefa.com


★ Voetbal International website and 2007/2008 presentation magazine