After starting for Feyenoord in the final of the UEFA Cup, Van Persie received the KNVB Best Young Talent award. An injury crisis at Feyenoord meant he was quickly promoted into the first team, and made his debut for the club at 17, the first of 15 total starts during the 2001–02 season. *Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league onlyīorn in Rotterdam, Van Persie joined the youth squad of local side SBV Excelsior when he was five, but left for Feyenoord at the age of 16 after falling out with the Excelsior coaching staff over his "petulant" attitude. He has represented his country at the 2006, 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cups, and the 2008 and 2012 UEFA European Championships. Van Persie has over 100 caps and has scored 50 goals for the Netherlands, making him their all-time top scorer. A month later, he scored his first senior international goal in a 4–0 win over Finland. By the end of the season he had helped his boyhood team win the Dutch Cup, his first trophy since the 2013 FA Community Shield.Īfter representing the Netherlands at under-17, under-19 and under-21 level, Van Persie made his senior international debut in 2005 in a friendly match against Romania.
During his spell in Turkey, Van Persie featured regularly in his first season, but saw limitations in playing time in the following two campaigns after suffering with injuries, with both club and player agreeing to a buyout in January 2018, after which he rejoined Feyenoord on a free transfer. Van Persie with Fenerbahçe in February 2016.Īfter two injury-hit seasons followed, Van Persie fell out of favour at Manchester United and he was allowed to leave for Fenerbahçe in July 2015. In his first season, he won the 2012–13 Premier League and finished as the league's top scorer with 26 goals, winning his second consecutive Premier League Golden Boot award.
He scored a club record of 35 goals in 2011 and was club captain for the 2011–12 season, prior to joining rivals Manchester United in July 2012. At Arsenal, Van Persie won the 2004 FA Community Shield and the 2004–05 FA Cup. After five years with Feyenoord, he fell out with manager Bert van Marwijk, and he joined English club Arsenal in 2004 for £2.75 million as a long-term replacement for compatriot Dennis Bergkamp. Van Persie made his senior debut for Feyenoord during the 2001–02 season, which culminated with victory in the 2002 UEFA Cup Final he was also named as the Dutch Football Talent of the Year. Regarded as one of the best strikers of his generation, he is the all-time top scorer for the Netherlands national team. Robin van Persie ( Dutch pronunciation: , born 6 August 1983) is a Dutch former professional footballer who played as a striker.