Olaf Lindenbergh

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Olaf Lindenbergh
Personal information
Full name Olaf Lindenbergh
Date of birth February 6, 1974 (1974-02-06) (age 34)
Place of birth    Purmerend, Netherlands
Height 1.79 m (5 ft 10+12 in)
Playing position midfielder
Club information
Current club Sparta Rotterdam
Number 11
Youth clubs
1990–1994 ZOB
Ajax
De Graafschap
Senior clubs1
Years Club App (Gls)*
1994-1999
1999–2005
2005–2007
2007-
De Graafschap
AZ Alkmaar
Ajax
Sparta Rotterdam
159 (6)
135 (6)
30 (0)
18 (0)   
National team
Netherlands national under-21 football team

1 Senior club appearances and goals
counted for the domestic league only and
correct as of 18 May 2008.
* Appearances (Goals)

Olaf Lindenbergh (born 6 February 1974 in Purmerend) is a Dutch footballer, who currently plays as a midfielder for Sparta Rotterdam.

Contents

[edit] Club career

After playing in the youth level at ZOB, Ajax and De Graafschap, Lindenbergh began his professional career at De Graafschap that played in the Eerste Divisie. His debut was on November 12, 1994 in a 1-0 win over VVV. He became a key player for the team straight away and helped them to gain promotion to the Eredivisie for the following season, in which he made 30 appearances. In total he took part in 159 games for De Graafschap, scoring six goals, with the club permanently in the top flight. During the 1999-00 season, he left De Vijverberg to continue his career at AZ Alkmaar.

At AZ, Lindenbergh was a first team regular from the start, but he struggled to gain appearances in his second season at the club. As of 2001 he was back on track and became one of the key players of the team unexpectedly made it to the UEFA Cup semi-finals in 2005, only to be beaten on away goals by Sporting Lisbon. Ajax manager Danny Blind acknowledged Lindenbergh's good form and declared an interest in signing him. At the end of the 2004/05 season, Lindenbergh agreed to a move to the Amsterdam ArenA.

He made his debut for the club in 2005 in the 2-0 Eredivisie victory against Willem II. He went on to play eighteen games that season, as well as gaining some Champions League experience along the way. Ajax went on to win the KNVB Cup that same season. When Blind left Ajax and Henk ten Cate was appointed as the new manager, times changed for Lindenbergh and he only appeared in 12 matches that season. Still he participated in the KNVB Cup, which Ajax successfully defended. Following speculation about a transfer (Lindenbergh, along with Michael Krohn-Dehli were deemed surplus to requirements, and were not even allowed to train with the first team to keep their fitness up), Lindenbergh signed with Sparta Rotterdam.

[edit] International career

While at De Graafschap, Lindenbergh was called up into the Holland-under-21 squad.

[edit] External links

[edit] References