FC Twente

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Twente
FC Twente emblem
Full name Football Club Twente
Nickname(s) The Tukkers
Pride of the East
Founded 1 July 1965; 58 years ago (1965-07-01)
Ground De Grolsch Veste
Enschede
Ground Capacity 30,205
Chairman No Chairman at the moment
Manager René Hake
League Eredivisie
2014–15 Eredivisie, 10th
Website Club home page
Current season

FC Twente (Dutch pronunciation: [ɛfˈseː ˈtʋɛntə]) is a Dutch professional football club from the city of Enschede, playing in the Eredivisie. The club was formed in 1965 by the merger of 1926 Dutch champions, Sportclub Enschede and Enschedese Boys. They were the holders of the 2011 KNVB Cup and Johan Cruijff Schaal trophies, and were Eredivisie champions in the 2009–10 season; the team has also finished as Eredivisie runner-up thrice, was runner-up in the UEFA Cup 1974–75, and has won the KNVB Cup three times. Twente's home ground since 1998 is De Grolsch Veste.

History

Foundation and early years

The club was formed in 1965 as a merger of two professional clubs, Sportclub Enschede and the Enschedese Boys. One of such predecessors, SC Enschede, had also won a single Dutch championship in 1926.[1]

The first successes of the club started just after the merger of 1965, under the innovative coach Kees Rijvers. Twente finished third in 1969, fourth in 1970, fifth in 1971, third in 1972 and once again in 1973. The team's key figures were local heroes, such as Epi Drost, Eddy Achterberg, Kick van der Vall and Theo Pahlplatz. Their finest Eredivisie season was 1973–1974, in which Twente battled for the Dutch championship with Feyenoord. A head-to-head confrontation in the very last game of the season, in Rotterdam, had to bring the decision. Feyenoord were slightly luckier: 3–2. A second slot and a UEFA Cup ticket—that was all for FC Twente.

However, the Tukkers (as people from the Dutch region of Twente are generally called) almost made the very most out of that UEFA Cup ticket. After beating Juventus in the semi-finals, FC Twente lost to German side Borussia Mönchengladbach in the finals (0–0, 1–5).

In 1977 FC Twente wins its first trophy; the KNVB cup after beating PEC Zwolle 3–0.[2]

The 1980s and 1990s

After enjoying some success in the 1970s, things went downhill for Twente and the club was even relegated to the Eerste Divisie (Dutch second division) in 1983. Twente returned to the top flight a year later, but the club soon became known for their amazing number of 1–1 and 0–0 draws. Their new reputation 'boring Twente' overshadowed the fact that the club kept qualifying for European football on a fairly regular basis: five times since 1985.

Re-establishment then followed in the 1990s: German coach Hans Meyer led Twente to the third slot in the Eredivisie of 1997 and to the third round of the UEFA Cup the next season. On 24 May 2001, Twente clinched their second triumph in the KNVB Cup, beating PSV in the final after being 3–1 down in the penalty shoot-out. The season thereafter Twente crashed out of the cup against the teenagers of Ajax's second team, whereas results in the league were poor and the hardcore Twente fans Ultras Vak-P went on a rampage at the club's brand-new stadium out of frustration.

From bankruptcy to national champions (2002–2011)

Steve McClaren, the first manager to win the title for FC Twente.

The club's mother corporation (FC Twente '65) was declared bankrupt in the 2002–03 season, almost leading to the end of the club's existence. The club, now chaired by ambitious businessman Joop Munsterman, survived such problems and made it to another KNVB Cup final in 2004, and then finishing in fourth place in 2006–07. In the season 2007–08, FC Twente placed fourth and won the play-offs for a ticket to the Champions League Qualifiers by defeating Ajax in the play-off finals.

In the 2008–09 season, FC Twente hired former England manager Steve McClaren as new boss: under his tenure, unseeded Twente entered the draw for the third qualifying round of the Champions League, being drawn against seeded Arsenal. The two legs were played at home on 13 August and away on 27 August 2008. Twente lost 6–0 on aggregate, resulting in their elimination from the Champions League and subsequent entry of the UEFA Cup first round. At domestic level, FC Twente placed second in the Eredivisie (11 points below the league's champion AZ Alkmaar) and again gained entry to the Champions League qualifying rounds as Dutch runners-up, as well as KNVB Cup finalists (then defeated by SC Heerenveen).

The 2009–10 season started with Twente being knocked out of the Champions League third qualifying round after a 1–1 aggregate draw against Sporting CP, which sent the Portuguese side through on away goals.[3] The club was then admitted to the Europa League, where it enjoyed a relatively successful path which ended in a 4–2 aggregate defeat at the hands of Werder Bremen in the round of 32. At domestic level, Twente won its first Eredivisie title at the end of a campaign in which they lost just twice, winning 16 of 17 at home. The championship was confirmed on the final day of the season when they beat NAC 2–0 away,[4] making Steve McClaren the first Englishman to guide a Dutch team to a national title since Bobby Robson in 1992.[5] The victory qualified Twente for the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League Group Stage onwards, the club's first appearance in the competition. At the end of the season, Steve McClaren resigned as the manager, moving to German side VfL Wolfsburg, and was replaced by Belgian Michel Preud'homme. Twente continued their success by having a good run during the 2010–11 KNVB Cup, reaching the final on 8 May 2011 at De Kuip.[6] Twente recovered from 2–0 down to defeat Ajax 3–2 in extra time with a winner from Marc Janko,[7] which claimed the club's third KNVB Cup title.[8] One week later, the two teams faced each other in Amsterdam in the final round of matches in the Eredivisie, with Twente leading by a point. However, Ajax gained revenge for the cup defeat by winning 3–1 to claim their first title in seven years.[9] The start of the 2011/2012 season, under new coach Co Adriaanse who succeeded Michel Preud'homme, featured another clash between the duo in the Amsterdam ArenA, with this time Twente winning 2–1 in their 2nd successive Dutch Super Cup 'Johan Cruijff Schaal' victory.[10]

Financial problems return

During the 2014/15 Eredivisie season it emerged Twente got themselves in financial trouble again, forcing the Dutch FA to deduct the club 3 points in March 2015.[11] Club president Munsterman, who had announced to leave the club at the end of the season, then already quit the club on April 1st 2015 over allegations of financial mismanagement.[12] They fired 18 employees[13] and stopped with their scouting department after they received a second three-point penalty in April 2015.[14] They also decided to withdraw Jong Twente from the Eerste Divisie for the 2015/16 season and possibly the women's pro team.[15]

Satellite clubs

The following clubs are affiliated with FC Twente:

Stadium

The gate at the stadium symbolizes the history.

De Grolsch Veste, formerly named Arke Stadion, is the official stadium of FC Twente and is owned by the club. It is located at the Business & Science Park, near the University of Twente and between the city centers of Enschede and Hengelo. It has a spectator capacity of 30,205 with a standard pitch heating system and has a promenade instead of fences around the stands.

De Grolsch Veste corner from the outside.

De Grolsch Veste replaced the old Diekman Stadion as Twente's home ground on 22 March 1998. Initially plans had been afoot to expand and renovate the old and now demolished Diekman stadium. However, with a growing fan capacity and with arguments that the location of the Diekman stadium was not strategic enough, the idea was conceived to build a new arena for the Twente fans. The Diekman ground also faced problems with its seating plans as a result of the FIFA regulations, which impose a requirement to construct a seating stand behind each goal.

The cost of the construction is estimated to be around 33 million guilders, and the stadium took fourteen months to complete, with its foundation stone having been laid on 31 January 1997. Due to the tight budget available, the layout of the stadium was constructed so that future expansions are possible without the necessity to tear down entire existing stands.

On 10 May 1998, the first match played at the stadium resulted in a 3–0 victory by the home team against PSV in an Eredivisie match.

Initially, the Grolsch Veste had a capacity of 13,500 spectators, which was later reduced to 13,250. As of the start of the 2008/09 season, the stadium has been expanded with a partial second ring increasing the capacity to 24,000 seats. After a second expansion, completed in 2011, the current capacity became 30,205.

The recording of "You'll Never Walk Alone" by Gerry & the Pacemakers is sung along in the whole stadium before every kick-off.

On 7 July 2011, a section of the stadium roof collapsed whilst expansion work was taking place at the stadium, killing two people.[24]

Current squad

As of 1 September 2015

For recent transfers, see List of Dutch football transfers summer 2015

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
1 Netherlands GK Nick Marsman
3 Brazil DF Bruno Uvini (on loan from Napoli)
4 Greece DF Giorgos Katsikas
5 Netherlands DF Robbert Schilder
6 Chile MF Felipe Gutiérrez (captain)
7 Germany FW Chinedu Ede
9 Norway FW Torgeir Børven
10 Morocco MF Hakim Ziyech
11 Ghana FW Thomas Agyepong (on loan from Manchester City)
12 Germany FW Tim Hölscher
14 Peru MF Renato Tapia
15 Denmark DF Joachim Andersen
16 Netherlands GK Joël Drommel
No. Position Player
17 Netherlands DF Hidde ter Avest
19 Ghana MF Shadrach Eghan
20 Netherlands GK Sonny Stevens
22 South Africa MF Kamohelo Mokotjo
23 Netherlands MF Jelle van der Heyden
24 Netherlands FW Jari Oosterwijk
25 Netherlands DF Peet Bijen
26 Cape Verde FW Jerson Cabral
27 Netherlands FW Alessio Da Cruz
28 Netherlands DF Jeroen van der Lely
30 Netherlands GK Timo Plattel
31 Finland MF Richard Jensen
99 Nigeria FW Michael Olaitan (on loan from Olympiacos)

On loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
8 Netherlands MF Kyle Ebecilio (at Nottingham Forest until 30 June 2016)
18 Curaçao FW Felitciano Zschusschen (at FC Oss until 30 June 2016)

Notable players

For all FC Twente players with a Wikipedia article see: FC Twente players

Top scorers

Managers

Honours

National

International

Domestic results

Below is a table with FC Twente's domestic results since the introduction of the Eredivisie in 1956.

Women's section

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The women's section of Twente was founded in 2007 for the creation of the Eredivisie as new top level league in the Netherlands. Twente played the opening match of the league. After three midfield positions in the first three years, Twente won the championship in 2010/11 and plays the UEFA Women's Champions League in 2011/12.

See also

References

  1. Netherlands - Champions - RSSSF
  2. Netherlands Cup Finals - RSSSF
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  11. KNVB straft FC Twente met puntenaftrek - NOS (Dutch)
  12. Joop Munsterman alsnog per direct weg bij FC Twente - RTV Oost (Dutch)
  13. FC Twente: Ontslag voor 18 medewerkers - Tubantia (Dutch)
  14. FC Twente stopt ook profscouting - AD (Dutch)
  15. FC Twente stopt met beloftenteam in Jupiler League - FOXSports (Dutch)
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  18. Samenwerking met Dutch Lions FC getekend, officiële website (14 januari 2011)
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  20. "Qarabağ" "Tvente" ilə əməkdaşlıq edəcək (Azerbaijani)
  21. `Qarabağ` – `Tvente` : iki qardaş, bir yumruq! (Azerbaijani)
  22. Samenwerking met Koz, officiële website (2 juni 2010)
  23. 23.0 23.1 Samenwerking jeugdopleiding voortgezet, officiële website (16 juni 2009)
  24. FC Twente stadium collapses, killing one and hospitalising 10

External links

Official websites
  • FCTwente.nl Official website of FC Twente (Dutch) / (English) / (German)
  • FC Twente TV Official website FC Twente TV (No membership required)
  • UEFA.com The FC Twente Story
General fan sites
News sites