Rob Rensenbrink

Rob Rensenbrink
Rob Rensenbrink, 1978
Personnel
Surname	Pieter Robert Rensenbrink
birthday	July 3, 1947
place of birth	Amsterdam ,  Netherlands
date of death	January 24, 2020
Place of death	Oostzaan ,  Netherlands
size	178 cm
position	striker
Men's
Years	station	Games (goals) 1
1965-1969	DWS Amsterdam	120 0(34)
1969-1971	Club Bruges	55 0(24)
1971-1979	RSC Anderlecht	260 (143)
1980	Portland Timbers	18 00(6)
1981	Toulouse FC	12 00(1)
National team
Years	selection	Games (goals)
1968-1979	Netherlands	49 0(14)
1 Only league games are given.

Pieter Robert Rensenbrink (born July 3, 1947 in Amsterdam , † January 24, 2020 in Oostzaan ) was a Dutch football player .

Rensenbrink was one of the best left wingers of the 1970s. He was runner-up with the Dutch national team at the 1974 World Cup and 1978 World Cup. At the European Championship in 1976 he was third with the Netherlands. He scored a total of 14 goals in 49 international matches. His nickname was "het slangenmens" (the contortionist).

society

Rensenbrink was born in Amsterdam and began his football career at the Amsterdam amateur club DWS. He then moved to Belgium for Club Bruges in 1969 at the age of 22 . Between 1971 and 1980 he played for RSC Anderlecht . With the RSC Anderlecht he was twice - 1976 and 1978 - European Cup winner, twice champion and four times cup winner. In 1977 you were also in the final of the competition. In 1976 he was voted Belgium's Footballer of the Year. In the same year he was the first player to be awarded the Onze d'or (European Footballer of the Year) by the French magazine Onze Mondial . At the Ballon d'Or of the French football magazine France Football , he took second place in 1976 and third place in 1978. In 1978 and 1979 Onze Mondial was awarded the Onze de bronze as the third best football player to play in Europe.

National team

Rensenbrink completed his first international match for the Elftal against Scotland in 1968 . However, he was rarely used in the following years, as Piet Keizer and the superstar Johan Cruyff played in his position. Rinus Michels took him to Germany for the World Cup.

World Cup 1974

The Netherlands totally dominated the tournament in Germany with their football . Rensenbrink had a difficult time, as the team consisted mainly of players from Ajax Amsterdam and Feyenoord Rotterdam and he was a kind of outsider. He was also unfamiliar with the game system. The position in the left offensive was occupied by Johan Cruyff, so that he played behind him in the left midfield. With the exception of one game, Rensenbrink was on the pitch in every game in the World Cup. In the second final round he scored the goal of the 2-0 final score in the encounter with the GDR . After the game against Brazil in the second final round, Rensenbrink was ailing. Therefore, he went into the finals battered and had to be replaced by René van de Kerkhof at half-time . The Netherlands lost the game against Germany with 1: 2.

EM 1976

The Netherlands qualified for the finals of the 1976 European Championship in Yugoslavia. Rensenbrink had contributed to the 3-1 win against Italy with a goal in qualifying. His team failed in the semifinals, however, on the eventual winner Czechoslovakia in extra time. The game for third place was won against Yugoslavia in extra time. Rensenbrink took part in both games as a regular player.

World Cup 1978

In 1978 the Elftal traveled to Argentina for the World Cup under coach Ernst Happel . Cruyff had resigned and Rensenbrink could now play in his position. Together with Johnny Rep and René van de Kerkhof, he formed the Dutch attack. Rensenbrink played a strong tournament and scored three times against Iran in the preliminary round. He scored once against Scotland and scored the 1000th goal in World Cup history. In the second final round he converted a penalty in a 5-1 win against Austria. After a draw with Germany and a 2-1 win over Italy, the Netherlands reached the final against hosts Argentina . The Elftal had equalized after a goal by the Argentines after 38 minutes in the 81st minute to 1-1. In stoppage time, Rensenbrink had a good chance to score when he hit the post from a tight angle in front of the Argentine goalkeeper. Rensenbrink would not only have made his team world champions with one goal, but would also have become the tournament's top scorer with six goals. Mario Kempes scored the first of the two Argentinian goals in extra time and was also the tournament's top scorer with six goals. Argentina won 3-1.

EM 1980

With a goal in qualifying for the 1980 European Championship against Iceland in 1978, Rensenbrink made a contribution to the successful qualification of his country for the 1980 European Championship in Italy, but then withdrew from the Elftal before the tournament . The qualifier against Poland on May 2, 1979 in Chorzów was his last international match.

Sickness and death

As it became known in late July 2015, Rensenbrink was suffering from progressive muscular atrophy , a muscle disease and variant of ALS . Rensenbrink died in January 2020 at the age of 72.

Trivia

• Rensenbrink was part of the FIFA 100 , a list published by Pelé on the occasion of FIFA 's centenary with the 125 best football players still alive for the anniversary.
• With a total of 25 goals, Rensenbrink is the record scorer in the history of the European Cup Winners' Cup .

successes

Club Bruges

• Belgian Football Cup : 1970

RSC Anderlecht

• First division : 1972, 1974
• Belgian Football Cup : 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976
• European Cup Winners' Cup : 1976, 1978
• UEFA Super Cup : 1976, 1978

Netherlands

• Vice World Champion 1974, 1978
• European championship third in 1976

Individual awards / records

• Onze d'or : 1976
• Belgian Golden Shoe : 1976
• Belgian top scorer (together with Alfred Riedl ): 1973
• Election to the All-Star Team World Cup 1974 (attack)
• Election to the All-Star Team World Cup 1978 (midfield)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Rensenbrink suffers from the muscle disease PSMA. In: anderslecht-online.be. July 29, 2015. Retrieved July 29, 2015 . 

predecessor	Office	successor
Johan Boskamp	Belgium's footballer of the year 1976	Julien Cools