Maikel Kieftenbeld

Maikel Kieftenbeld (born 26 June 1990) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for club Emmen.

Kieftenbeld began his football career with his hometown club, VV Lemelerveld, before joining Twente's youth system as a young teenager.

Kieftenbeld was born on 26 June 1990 in Lemelerveld, in the municipality of Dalfsen, Netherlands, where he attended Heilig Hartschool primary school.

After leaving school he began a college course in business economics, but did not complete it.

He came from a sporty family.

His mother, Anja, and one of his sisters played volleyball, another sister rode horses.

His father, Joop, coached in the lower reaches of Dutch amateur football, including at SV SDOL of the Vijfde Klasse and the reserve team of Tweede Klasse club VV Lemerleveld, the hometown club where Maikel began playing football at the age of five.

Twente let him leave for Eerste Divisie (second-tier) club Go Ahead Eagles in 2007, and a year later, he made his senior debut and signed his first professional contract.

Kieftenbeld was spotted by scouts from Twente, but after four seasons in their youth system, the staff believed he was not up to the required standard, so in 2007 he moved on to Deventer-based Eerste Divisie (second-tier) club Go Ahead Eagles.

The following summer, he took part in the first-team's pre-season training camp in Germany, and made his senior debut on the opening day of the 2008–09 Eerste Divisie, on 8 August 2008 away to VVV-Venlo.

He entered the game to replace the injured Ceriel Oosthout just before half-time with his team 1–0 down; they lost 5–0.

In September, he signed his first professional contract, of three years with an option for a fourth.

He scored his first senior goal on 24 April 2009 – the winner as Go Ahead Eagles beat Veendam 2–1 – and finished the season as a first-team regular with 30 league appearances.

In his second season, he helped Go Ahead Eagles to reach the final round of the promotion play-offs, in which they lost to Willem II.

He spent two seasons as a regular member of GA Eagles' first team before joining Eredivisie club Groningen in 2010.

He played as a right back during his first year with Groningen, switching to midfield in his second season.

In April 2010, Kieftenbeld was being linked with a move to AZ, the reigning Dutch champions.

By the beginning of June, all parties had agreed terms, but the financial situation at AZ and a change of ownership meant the deal did not proceed.

On 17 June 2010, the 19-year-old Kieftenbeld signed a four-year contract with Eredivisie club Groningen, who paid a €300,000 fee for the player.

He was presented as a right back, despite only ever having played in midfield.

In his first season at Groningen he did indeed play at right back, competently enough, but in a 5–1 defeat away to Feyenoord, he struggled against Ryo Miyaichi, a player with pace and ability with both feet, and eventually fouled him to concede a penalty.

Groningen finished the season in fifth position, thus qualifying for the play-offs for a place in the Europa League.

Kieftenbeld was sent off in the first leg of the semi-final, so was suspended for the second.

He was replaced at half-time in the first leg of the final, which Groningen lost 5–1 to ADO Den Haag, and was an unused substitute in the second leg as they recovered from the four-goal deficit only to lose out on penalties.

In his second season, Kieftenbeld played regularly in his preferred position in midfield.

He scored his first goal for Groningen on 30 October 2011 in what finished up as their biggest win ever against Feyenoord, by six goals to nil.

Kieftenbeld's goal was the second of the six, a powerful drive from 30 m. In the January transfer window, Groningen turned down what was described as a substantial bid for him from Belgian Pro League club Club Brugge; having let Danny Holla join VVV-Venlo on loan, they were not prepared to lose another midfielder.

His performances over the season earned him the supporters' vote as Player of the Year.

He played for the Netherlands Beloftenelftal at the 2012 Toulon Tournament, and was capped five times for his country at under-21 level.

Kieftenbeld was more often substitute than starter in the first few weeks of 2012–13 under new manager Robert Maaskant, but went on to re-establish himself in the side.

A minor knee injury sustained during the mid-season training camp meant he missed a couple of matches, and thereafter his appearances in the starting eleven were intermittent, whether through suspension or just not being selected.

Groningen finished in seventh place, albeit 19 points behind Twente whom they faced in the play-offs.

Kieftenbeld put in a strong performance in the first leg in a 1–0 defeat at home, but a 3–2 loss in the second leg confirmed that Groningen would not qualify for the Europa League.

Appointed vice-captain for 2013–14, he took on the captaincy during the season, and helped the club qualify for European football for the first time in seven years.

Ahead of the 2013–14 season, Maaskant's replacement Erwin van de Looi appointed Kieftenbeld vice-captain, with Rasmus Lindgren as captain.

He began the season on the bench, but soon came back into the starting eleven, frequently wore the captain's armband in Lindgren's absence, and reduced his yellow-card count in the first half of the season from his usual five or six to just one.

Towards the end of the season, he captained the side even when Lindgren played – at the latter's recommendation – and according to the club's website, he was the inspiration for a ten-match unbeaten finish that meant Groningen qualified for European football for the first time in seven years.

He captained Groningen to victory in the 2014–15 KNVB Cup final to win the first major trophy in the club's history.

Ahead of the 2015–16 season, he joined Football League Championship (second-tier) club Birmingham City, where he was to spend five-and-a-half years.

he signed for another Championship club, Millwall, in January 2021.