Marco van Basten: The greatest '9' in the history of football

Marcel van Basten, better known as Marco van Basten, was arguably one of the greatest strikers in football history. His clinical finishing instinct alongside his great control of the ball made him a lethal forward, scoring over 300 goals in his career.

Van Basten is a story of a diligent professional whose sporting ambitions took him to the very peak of football glory. However, in 1986 his left ankle fell injured and required complicated surgery to reconstruct his torn ligaments. His ankle injury spiraled negatively, essentially forcing him to retire prematurely.

The great Dutch striker started his career at Ajax and later moved to A.C. Milan where he won a total of 20 titles, including the 'Ballon d'Or' three times. He stands next to Johan Cruyff and Michel Platini as one of the most awarded football players in history.

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In 1999, van Basten was awarded the second-best football player in Dutch history, right behind Cruyff. Later in 2004, he was labeled as one of the most important athletes in Dutch history.

Van Basten kicked off his career at Ajax, where he won three Eredivisie, and three KNVB titles during his spell in Amsterdam. He first joined the club as a young athlete, at age 16. Due to growing pains, he had a hard time settling down, however, his coaches saw his talent and pushed him to play for the ‘B’ senior team.

On February 1981, Marco van Basten made his official debut with Jong Ajax, as the starting striker Rini van Roon had to sit out due to appendicitis. Van Basten would go on and score four goals on his debut. During the 1982 season, he would go on to play 20 games and score nine goals for the first team.

As the goals kept coming for van Basten, the Dutch national team offered him a spot in the starting lineup. He managed to score a goal in his international debut against Belgium, but his fantastic season was cut short due to more health-related injuries

During his 1985-86 season at Ajax, Cruyff named van Basten captain of the first team. The young 20-year-old striker ended up winning the golden boot with a whooping 37 goals in total for that league season.

Young van Basten was climbing up in the football ecosystem, but due to issues in his left and right ankle, he had to halt his progress to get surgery. It is believed he later over-saturated his ankles during the healing process and that gave way to the chronic pains he endured during the rest of his career.

The following year, Silvio Berlusconi who had just become the new president of A.C. Milan set his eyes on young van Basten as a key transfer for the Italian club. Both sides were in agreement but van Basten wanted to finish his season at Ajax out of loyalty to his coach and his team.

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At age 23, Marco van Basten packed his bags for Milan, following Cruyff's advice. The Italian club paid $2.5mn dollars for his transfer. Due to recurring injuries and a lack of confidence in the recovery, van Basten began playing a secondary role for the club mainly coming off from the bench.

During the 1992-93 season, A.C. Milan would see themselves as league leaders with “Capello’s invincibles”. The Italian team did not lose a single league game that year! Van Basten got the league title he waited so long for however only played thirteen games and scored 13 goals that season.

Van Basten would also go on to win a European cup with the Dutch national team in 1988. Regardless of recurring pains, van Basten left his heart on the pitch and even ended up scoring a goal against Germany in the semifinals. Van Basten would also go on to score in the final against the Soviet Union. 

It is hard to understand the constant pain Marco van Basten experienced but it was enough to call his professional career short. The Dutch striker was forced to hang up his football cleats due to a series of sloppy surgeries and rushed recoveries.

His ankle pain was unbearable on a day-to-day basis, doctors were trying all types of treatments but nothing was providing long-term solutions. In 1994, Dr. Martens placed an Ilizarov apparatus on van Basten’s ankles but it just made matters worse. In 1995 he announced he was retiring from football.

Marco van Basten came back to the football world as a coach for Jong Ajax during the 2003-04 season, and later as a national team coach in 2004. He would later rejoin Ajax as a coach in 2008.

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Van Basten still stands as one of the most respected football legends in the world, and many share a deep sense of admiration towards him. His dedication and his passion for football were so strong that he would persistently play through the pain. That is true passion!