Dutch Footballer
- Considered one of the best Dutch strikers in history.
- Debut as a player: 1982 (Ajax Amsterdam)
- Position: Forward
- Sporting retirement: 1995 (AC Milan)
- Awards: Ballon d'Or, FIFA World Player of the Year...
- Parents: Leny and Joop van Basten
- Spouse: Liesbeth van Capelleveen (d. 1993)
- Children: Rebecca, Alexander, Deborah
- Name: Marcel van Basten
- Height: 1.88 m
Marco van Basten was born on 31 October 1964 in Utrecht.
Family
He was the youngest of three children born to Leny and Joop van Basten. His sister is called Carla, and his brother is called Stanley.
Because his maternal grandmother had trouble pronouncing the name Marcel, he became Marco shortly after his birth.
When he was young, he saw his friend Jopie sinking through the ice at Maarssen. He did everything he could to help him, but he could not stop him from drowning.
Soccer
He started playing for a local team when he was six years old. A year later, he moved to Utrecht, and from the age of nine, he briefly played for the unknown Elinkwijk.
A center forward, he played as a lone striker or alongside another striker. Occasionally, he also played as a right winger or attacking midfielder.
Ajax Amsterdam
He made his debut for Ajax Amsterdam at just sixteen years old, a team with which he would win three Dutch leagues and three Dutch cups and the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1987.
National Team
His brilliant play (he was top scorer in the Dutch league on three occasions) led him to play for his country's national team, with which, between 1983 and 1993, he would score 24 goals, one of which, against the Soviet Union, enabled Holland to win the 1988 European Championship.
Blessed with exceptional class, van Basten was capable of turning any match around. Able to shoot from any position and with any spin, van Basten, in addition to shooting, knew how to dribble, head, and play without the ball.
AC Milan
Signed by Italian side AC Milan in 1987, he enjoyed his finest moments as a player with that club, winning three Italian league titles (1988, 1992 and 1993), two European Cups (1989 and 1990), two European Super Cups (1990 and 1991) and two Intercontinental Cups (1989 and 1990). He played a total of 147 matches for Milan, scoring 90 goals.
Injuries
His career was plagued by injuries that constantly threatened his continued existence in football. His career ended due to a chronic ankle injury that forced him to retire in 1995, although he played his last game in 1993. Finally, he accepted the proposal to immobilize his ankle forever, joining it to the rest of his leg. He could no longer bend or turn it. Since then, he has been unable to run, but he no longer felt pain.
Golden Ball
In 1986 he received the Golden Boot (a trophy awarded annually by the French magazine France Football to the top scorer in European league competitions) and, on three occasions (1988, 1989 and 1992), the Ballon d'Or (a title awarded each year by the same publication to the best European player).
Coach
In 2004, he became coach of the Dutch national team, which he managed until June 2008, following the 2006 World Cup and Euro 2008.
In July 2008, he was hired by Ajax Amsterdam, which he managed until the end of that season. He also managed SC Heerenveen and AZ Alkmaar.
Marriage and Children
On 21 June 1993, he married Liesbeth van Capelleveen in Haarzuilens. At that time, they had two daughters and later a son. They lived in Badhoevedorp for a long time, but when he became Ajax coach in 2008, they decided to move to Amsterdam.
Autobiography
In November 2019, her autobiography was published under the title Basta. My Life. My Truth , which sold more than 100,000 copies in the Netherlands.