Willem II Tilburg

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Willem II

Full name

Willem II Tilburg

Nickname(s)

Red White Blue Army
King's Army
Tricolores

Founded

August 12, 1896

Ground

Willem II Stadion
Tilburg
(Capacity 14,700)

Chairman

Hans Verbunt

Manager

Andries Jonker

League

Eredivisie

2007/2008

Eredivisie, 15th





Home colours





Away colours

Willem II is a Dutch football club playing in Tilburg. The club was founded as Tilburgia on August 12, 1896. On January 12, 1898, the club was renamed Willem II, after Dutch king Willem II (1840-1849), who, as Prince of Orange and commander of the Dutch army, had his military headquarters in Tilburg during the Belgian uprising of 1830. In 2004, the club added Tilburg to its official name, becoming Willem II Tilburg.^{[citation needed]}

The club has had many famous players, such as Jaap Stam. The club jersey consists of red-white-blue vertical stripes, inspired by the colours of the flag of the Netherlands. Willem II plays its home matches in the Willem II Stadion. The stadium, opened on May 31, 1995, has a capacity of 14,700 spectators. The average attendance in 2004/05 was 12,500 people.

Willem II has won three national titles (1916, 1952 and 1955) and two national cups (1944 and 1963). In 1987, 1990 and 1999, Willem II were voted Dutch Club of the Year. In 1999, a second place in the league guaranteed the club a UEFA Champions League berth. In the first group stage (Group G), Willem II were eliminated. They scored 2 points in 6 matches. In 1963, Willem II lost to Manchester United (7-2 on aggregate) in the first round of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. In 1998-99, Willem II competed in the UEFA Cup. After beating Dinamo Tbilisi of Georgia 6-0 on aggregate in the first round, Willem II lost to Spanish side Real Betis in the second round, 4-1 on aggregate. After reaching the Dutch cup final in 2004 (4-0 loss against PSV Eindhoven), Willem II qualified again for the UEFA Cup, in which they lost to French side AS Monaco in the first round (5-1 on aggregate).

1 1999/2000 Champions League
2 Honours
3 Current squad
- 3.1 Players out on loan
4 Notable former players
5 Former managers
6 See also
7 External links

[edit] 1999/2000 Champions League

Matches	Classification Group G
Willem II - Spartak Moskva 1-3 Girondins de Bordeaux - Willem II 3-2 Sparta Praha - Willem II 4-0 Willem II - Sparta Praha 3-4 Spartak Moskva - Willem II 1-1 Willem II - Girondins de Bordeaux 0-0	Sparta Praha 6 - 12 Girondins de Bordeaux 6 - 12 Spartak Moskva 6 - 5 Willem II Tilburg 6 - 2

[edit] Honours

Eredivisie
- Winners (3): 1916, 1952, 1955
Eerste Divisie
- Winners (2): 1957, 1965
KNVB Cup
- Winners (2): 1944, 1963

[edit] Current squad

No.	Position	Player
1	GK	Maikel Aerts
3	DF	Thomas Bælum
4	DF	Frank van der Struijk
5	DF	José Valencia Murillo
6	FW	Sergio Zijler
7	FW	Darl Douglas
8	MF	Christophe Grégoire
9	FW	Frank Demouge
10	MF	Saïd Boutahar
12	DF	Jens Janse
14	MF	Mohamed Messoudi
15	DF	Arjan Swinkels
16	GK	Kenneth Vermeer (on loan from Ajax)
17	MF	Mehmet Akgün
18	MF	Danny Mathijssen

No.	Position	Player
19	FW	Rydell Poepon (on loan from Ajax)
20	FW	Niels Vorthoren
21	MF	Ken van Mierlo
22	DF	Ibrahim Kargbo
23	MF	Steef Nieuwendaal
24	FW	Ronnie Reniers
25	DF	Léo Veloso
26	GK	Björn Sengier
27	DF	Angelo Martha
28	FW	George Mourad
30	DF	Delano Hill (captain)
33	DF	Daan van Dinter