Dennis Bergkamp

Dennis Nicolaas Maria Bergkamp (born 10 May 1969) is a Dutch professional football coach and former player who was most recently the Assistant manager of Ajax.

Originally a wide midfielder, Bergkamp was moved to main striker and then to second striker, where he remained throughout his playing career.

He is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation, one of the greatest forwards in Premier League history and amongst Ajax's and Arsenal's greatest ever players.

The son of an electrician, Bergkamp was born in Amsterdam and played as an amateur in the lower leagues.

He was spotted by Ajax at age 11 and made his professional debut in 1986.

Manager Johan Cruyff gave him his professional debut on 14 December 1986 against Roda JC; the match ended in a 2–0 victory for Ajax.

He went on to make 23 appearances in the 1986–87 season, including a European debut against Malmö FF in the 1986–87 European Cup Winners' Cup, earning him praise.

Ajax won the competition, beating Lokomotive Leipzig 1–0 as Bergkamp made an appearance as a substitute.

In later seasons, Bergkamp established himself as a first-team player for Ajax.

Bergkamp scored his first senior goal for the club against HFC Haarlem on 22 February 1987 in a match Ajax won 6–0.

This culminated in a period of success for the club, which won the Eredivisie title in the 1989–90 season for the first time in five years.

Bergkamp scored 29 goals in 36 matches the following season and became the joint top scorer in the league, sharing the accolade with PSV striker Romário.

Prolific form led to an international call-up with the Netherlands in 1990, attracting the attention of several European clubs.

Bergkamp was the top scorer in the Eredivisie from 1991 to 1993 and was voted Dutch Footballer of the Year in 1992 and 1993.

In total, he scored 122 goals in 239 matches for his hometown club.

Bergkamp attracted the attention of several European clubs as a result of his performances for Ajax.

Johan Cruyff advised him not to join Real Madrid, one of the teams said to have been interested in him.

But Bergkamp was insistent on playing in Italy.

He considered Serie A "the biggest league at the time" and preferred a move to either Juventus or Inter Milan.

With the Netherlands national team, Bergkamp was selected for Euro 1992, where he impressed, scoring three goals as his country reached the semi-finals.

Ajax won the 1992 UEFA Cup Final, beating Torino through the away goals ruling.

Bergkamp signed for Italian club Inter Milan in 1993, where he had two underwhelming seasons.

They then defeated Heerenveen 6–2 in the final of the KNVB Cup on 20 May 1993.

After joining Arsenal in 1995, he rejuvenated his career, helping the club to win three Premier League titles (one unbeaten), four FA Cup trophies, and reach the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final.

At the 1998 FIFA World Cup, he scored a memorable winning goal in the final minute of the quarterfinal against Argentina which has been regarded as one of the greatest FIFA World Cup goals.

Bergkamp surpassed Faas Wilkes's record to become the country's top scorer of all time in 1998, a record later eclipsed by Patrick Kluivert, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, and Robin van Persie.

Bergkamp has been described by Jan Mulder as having "the finest technique" of any Dutch international and a "dream for a striker" by teammate Thierry Henry.

Bergkamp finished third twice in the FIFA World Player of the Year award and was selected by Pelé as one of the FIFA 100 greatest living players.

In 2007, he was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame, the first and only Dutch player ever to receive the honour.

Bergkamp was inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame in 2021.

Despite noting a desire to not go into coaching, Bergkamp served as an assistant at Ajax between 2011 and 2017.

In 2017, Bergkamp's goal against Newcastle United in 2002 was voted as the best Premier League goal of all time in the league's 25-year history, involving a flick around Newcastle defender Nikos Dabizas before calmly tapping the ball into the net.

Born in Amsterdam, Bergkamp was the last of Wim and Tonnie Bergkamp's four sons.

He was brought up in a working-class suburb, in a family aspiring to reach middle-class status.

His father, an electrician and amateur footballer in the lower leagues, named him in honour of Scottish striker Denis Law.

To comply with Dutch given name customs, an extra "n" was inserted in Bergkamp's first name by his father after it was not accepted by the registrar.

Bergkamp was raised as a Roman Catholic by his family and regularly attended church during his childhood.

Although in later years he said visits to church did not appeal to him, Bergkamp still maintains his faith.

According to Bergkamp, his childhood footballing heroes were Glenn Hoddle, whom he admired for his soft precise touch, and Johan Cruyff, who once coached him when he was twelve.

Bergkamp was brought up through Ajax's youth system, joining the club at age 11.