Ricky Van Wolfswinkel Dutch footballer, striker Date of Birth: 27.01.1989 Country: Netherlands

1. Early Life and Career
2. Vitesse Arnhem Debut and Breakthrough
3. Move to FC Utrecht and European Success
4. International Career

Early Life and Career

Ricky van Wolfswinkel is a Dutch footballer who currently plays as a striker for Swiss club Basel. Born in Zwolle, Netherlands, van Wolfswinkel began his footballing career with Vitesse Arnhem. He progressed through the club's youth ranks and was the club's top scorer in the youth league in 2007.

Vitesse Arnhem Debut and Breakthrough

Van Wolfswinkel made his professional debut for Vitesse's first team on April 5, 2008, replacing Santi Kolk in the 85th minute of a match against Sparta Rotterdam. He remained on the bench for the rest of the 2007/08 season. In the following season, he became a regular starter, making his first start in a game against De Graafschap on August 23, 2008. He scored his first goal in his third league appearance, again against Sparta Rotterdam. He went on to score 8 goals in the Eredivisie in the 2008/09 season, becoming the club's top scorer.

Move to FC Utrecht and European Success

In the summer of 2009, van Wolfswinkel joined FC Utrecht, signing a four-year contract. He made his debut for the club on August 9, 2009, in a match against RKC Waalwijk, scoring the winning goal in the match's third minute. Despite being benched for a period during the season, he regained his starting place towards the end. In the 2010/11 season, FC Utrecht earned a spot in the UEFA Europa League. Van Wolfswinkel played a key role in their successful qualification campaign, scoring 4 goals in the play-offs against FC Groningen and Roda JC. The club subsequently qualified for the Europa League group stage, with van Wolfswinkel contributing 6 goals in the qualifying rounds, including a hat-trick against Celtic FC. He also topped the Eredivisie goalscoring charts in the 2010/11 season, scoring 9 goals in the first 8 matches of the campaign.

International Career

Van Wolfswinkel represented the Netherlands at the youth levels before making his debut for the senior national team in August 2010. He has been capped 4 times for the Oranje but has yet to score a goal.