Clubs: AFC Ajax, Real Madrid CF, FC Internazionale Milano

UEFA honours
UEFA EURO 2008: Team of the Tournament
UEFA Champions League: winner 2010
UEFA Club Midfielder of the Year: 2010
UEFA.com users' Team of the Year: 2010

• Left his native Utrecht to join Ajax's academy as a schoolboy; twice voted young talent of year in the Netherlands – the second time after a brilliant 2006/07 season in which he scored 18 Eredivisie goals.

• Won his first cap for the Netherlands four months after making his Eredivisie debut for Ajax in December 2002; leapt to prominence with a man-of-the-match performance in the UEFA EURO 2004 play-off triumph against Scotland, scoring once and setting up three other goals in a 6-0 win in Amsterdam.

• Won one Eredivisie (2004) and two Dutch Cups (2006, 2007) with Ajax before joining Madrid for €27m in August 2007; scored the winner on his Liga debut, against Club Atlético de Madrid, and also finished the season strongly as the Merengues won the league.

• Featured at the 2006 FIFA World Cup and was man of the match in the Oranje's opening two games of UEFA EURO 2008 against Italy (3-0) and France (4-1), scoring in both; selected for UEFA's Team of the Tournament.

• Left Madrid for Inter in August 2009, taking the No10 shirt and rapidly endearing himself to the Nerazzurri fans; scored twice in the latter stages of the UEFA Champions League en route to a final victory against FC Bayern München in his former home stadium, the Santiago Bernabéu.

• Also won Serie A and the Coppa Italia in his first season in Italy; signed a two-year contract extension in October 2010, keeping him at San Siro until 2015.

• Was one of three players − along with David Villa and Thomas Müller − who scored a tournament-best five goals at the 2010 World Cup, but lost out on the top scorers' prize to the latter by virtue of assists and number of minutes played; also finished second, behind Diego Forlán, in the Golden Ball poll for the tournament's best player.