Player of the Tournament at the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, which the Netherlands hosted and won, Royston Drenthe impressed UEFA's Technical Study Group with his technique and hard work. Similar in style and appearance to former Dutch international Edgar Davids, he left Feyenoord for Real Madrid CF after that tournament.

• Born in Rotterdam, he spent the formative years of his career at Feyenoord and feeder club SBV Excelsior, playing mostly at left-back.

• Broke into Feyenoord's first team in 2006/07, making 26 Eredivisie appearances, before putting his talents on display, as a midfielder, in the Netherlands' U21 triumph (five appearances, one goal).

• Moved to Madrid in August 2007, being presented to fans alongside another newly acquired Dutchman, Wesley Sneijder.

• Won the Liga in his first season, making 18 appearances (seven as a starter) and scoring two goals.

• Barely seen in 2008/09 after Juande Ramos replaced Bernd Schuster but remained at club following Manuel Pellegrini's arrival as coach in 2009/10.

Did you know?
Drenthe scored on his debut for Madrid in the second leg of the 2007 Spanish Super Cup against Sevilla FC.