Ryan Babel

Ryan Guno Babel (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈrɑiɑm ˈbaːbəl]; born 19 December 1986) is a Dutch former professional footballer who played as a forward.

Babel began his career at Ajax in 1997, working his way up through the youth team and into the senior squad. He played three seasons for the first team before he was transferred to Liverpool in mid-2007, where under three successive managers he failed to secure a regular first team position. Babel was sold to 1899 Hoffenheim in January 2011, for a sum around half of that which Liverpool paid for him. His time at Hoffenheim was marred with disciplinary problems with three managers at the club. In the summer of 2012, Babel bought out the remaining final year of his contract, making him a free agent, and re-signed a one-year contract with Ajax. He then played for Kasımpaşa, Beşiktaş and Galatasaray in Turkey, Al Ain of the United Arab Emirates, Deportivo La Coruña and brief returns to the Premier League with Fulham and a loan to Ajax.

Babel was part of the Netherlands national team from 2005 to 2021 and has represented his country at all youth team levels. He played in two World Cups, 2006 and 2010, reaching the final of the latter.

Early career

Babel was born in Amsterdam. Inspired by the local footballing talent, including Ruud Gullit and Frank Rijkaard, Babel played for nearby youth-teams S.V Diemen, then Fortius. In 1997, he attended a youth selection day with AFC Ajax. He made it through the first selection round, but failed to progress any further. However, the next year Ajax accepted him and he played the 1999–2000 season for their D1 team. After having graduated through the C1, B1 and A1 teams, Babel signed his first professional contract in January 2004.