Mike Kleijn
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 9 February 2005 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Breda, Netherlands | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Positions | |||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team |
Volendam (on loan from Sparta Rotterdam) | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| Baronie | |||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2024 | Feyenoord | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2024– | Sparta Rotterdam | 19 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2024– | Jong Sparta | 15 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 2026– | → Volendam (loan) | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
| 2020 | Netherlands U15 | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | Netherlands U17 | 16 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 2023 | Netherlands U18 | 3 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2024 | Netherlands U19 | 3 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17 May 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 26 March 2024 | |||||||||||||||||
Mike Kleijn (born 9 February 2005) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a left-back or midfielder for Eerste Divisie club Volendam, on loan from Eredivisie club Sparta Rotterdam.
Professional career
Kleijn began playing football with the youth side of Baronie, and moved to Feyenoord's youth academy at the age of 6 in 2011.[1] He worked his way up their youth sides, eventually captaining the U18s, and signed his first professional contract with them on 2 November 2020.[2] In September 2022, he was named by English newspaper The Guardian as one of the best players born in 2005 worldwide.[3]
In his time with Feyenoord, Kleijn was included in the senior team's matchday squad only once, on 17 March 2022 in a Conference League game against Partizan, he remained on the bench in that game.[4]
On 12 April 2024, Kleijn signed a four-year contract with Sparta Rotterdam, beginning in the 2024–25 season.[5]
On 29 July 2026, Kleijn was loaned by Volendam for the 2026–27 season.[6]
International career
Kleijn is a youth international for the Netherlands, and captained the Netherlands U17s at the 2022 UEFA European Under-17 Championship.[7]
Career statistics
- As of match played 8 March 2026
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Sparta Rotterdam | 2024–25 | Eredivisie | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2025–26 | Eredivisie | 10 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 0 | |||
| Total | 18 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | |||
| Jong Sparta | 2024–25 | Tweede Divisie | 13 | 1 | — | — | — | 13 | 1 | |||
| 2025–26 | Tweede Divisie | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | ||||
| Career total | 35 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 1 | ||
References
- ↑ Theunis, Jeroen (12 November 2021). "Bredanaar Mike Kleijn (16) is een 'stille leider' bij Feyenoord, maar laat zijn voeten altijd spreken". BN DeStem (in Dutch). Retrieved 5 November 2023.
- ↑ "Mike Kleijn tekent contract bij Feyenoord |". 2 November 2020.
- ↑ Christenson, Marcus; Bloor, Steven; Blight, Garry (28 September 2022). "Next Generation 2022: 60 of the best young talents in world football". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
- ↑ "Feyenoord v Partizan game report". UEFA. 17 March 2022.
- ↑ "SPARTA LEGT JEUGDINTERNATIONAL MIKE KLEIJN VAST" [SPARTA SIGNS YOUTH INTERNATIONAL MIKE KLEIJN] (in Dutch). Sparta Rotterdam. 12 April 2024. Retrieved 15 July 2024.
- ↑ "FC Volendam haalt Mike Kleijn op huurbasis naar Kras Stadion" [FC Volendam brings Mike Kleijn to Kras Stadion on a loan basis] (in Dutch). FC Volendam. 29 July 2026. Retrieved 31 July 2026.
- ↑ "Definitieve selectie Onder 17 voor EK in Israël". www.onsoranje.nl.
External links
- Mike Kleijn at Soccerway
- Mike Kleijn at BDFutbol
- Ons Oranje O15 profile
- Ons Oranje O17 profile