In the golden haze of Dutch football’s rich tapestry, amidst the shimmering legacies of Cruyff, Gullit, and van Basten, there exists a quieter, perhaps more tragic figure — a towering striker whose head seemed almost magnetic when a cross came flying in, a man who could conjure goals out of thin air, yet whose post-football life took as many sharp turns as an Andrea Pirlo through ball. That man is Wim Kieft.
PART ONE
Born in Amsterdam on November 12, 1962, Kieft seemed destined to be a footballer from the moment he first kicked a ball around the backstreets of his native city. Towering and technical, with an instinct for positioning that belied his years, he joined Ajax’s famed youth academy, a breeding ground for total footballers and total dreamers alike. And what a nursery it was — his youth teammates included Frank Rijkaard, John van ‘t Schip, Marco van Basten, and Gerald Vanenburg, names that would go on to sparkle in orange and glitter across Europe. Yet, even among such exalted company, it was Kieft who first rose to prominence.
Kieft made his first-team debut for Ajax on May 4, 1980, not yet 18, slotting into a side rich in both talent and expectation. It didn’t take long for him to make an impact — scoring nine goals in his first full season, but it was the 1981–82 campaign that catapulted him to stardom. That year, Kieft was electrifying. With 32 goals in just as many Eredivisie games, he not only helped Ajax lift the title but also claimed the European Golden Boot, becoming the youngest ever winner at just 19.
Moreover, his ability in the air became his calling card. Few strikers in Europe — then or since — have demonstrated the same timing, precision, and bravery when launching themselves at a whipped-in cross. His headers were more like guided missiles — accurate, powerful, and occasionally unstoppable. Ajax fans, of course, adored him, and Europe took note.
However, as with many Dutch talents of the early 1980s, the lure of Italy — its glamour, money, and tactical sophistication — proved irresistible. In 1983, Kieft signed for Pisa, a modest club in Tuscany, newly promoted to Serie A. On paper, it was a step up, but in truth, it was a leap into the unknown, and the reality proved far harsher than he had perhaps expected.
As a result, Kieft’s first season with Pisa was tough — not just on the pitch, where he scored just three goals in a struggling side that was ultimately relegated, but off the pitch as well, where cultural and tactical differences, as well as personal adaptation, weighed heavily. Still, he stayed and helped Pisa bounce straight back up to Serie A, demonstrating loyalty and resilience, though his goals never flowed quite as freely on Italian soil.
His subsequent move to Torino FC in 1986 did little to improve his fortunes. Despite playing in a better team, he continued to underwhelm, scoring just eight goals in 49 league appearances over two seasons. Perhaps it was the defensive rigour of Italian football, or perhaps it was a matter of confidence — either way, the man who once set European goal charts ablaze found himself misfiring in a system that neither suited his style nor fed his hunger for crosses and chaos.
PART TWO
The turning point came in the summer of 1987, when Kieft returned to the Netherlands and signed for PSV Eindhoven. It was a decision that would not only reignite his career but also etch his name into the annals of Dutch football history. The timing could not have been better, and the team — packed with stars such as Ronald Koeman, Vanenburg, and Hans van Breukelen — was primed for greatness.
Indeed, the 1987–88 season turned out to be nothing short of historic. Kieft was sensational, netting 29 league goals, and more than 30 in all competitions, leading PSV to a domestic double. But more than that, he played a crucial role in guiding the team to the European Cup final, where they met S.L. Benfica in Stuttgart. The final itself was a grim, tense affair — a goalless draw after 120 minutes — but Kieft, ever cool under pressure, stepped up and scored in the penalty shootout, helping secure PSV’s first and only European Cup triumph.
What’s more, that summer, Kieft also became part of a select band of players to win four trophies in the same year — league, domestic cup, European Cup, and the European Championship with the national team. He was in elite company, alongside Van Breukelen, Koeman, Vanenburg, and Berry van Aerle. It was as if the stars had realigned, and the misfires of Italy were suddenly forgotten amidst the champagne and confetti of Eindhoven and Munich.
Speaking of Munich, it was on that very turf that Kieft enjoyed arguably his most famous moment in orange. Having been named in Rinus Michels’ squad for Euro 1988, he found himself used mostly as a substitute, behind van Basten and Gullit in the pecking order. But on June 18, 1988, in the final group game against the Republic of Ireland, Kieft came on in the second half with the match still goalless and tension mounting.
Then, in the 82nd minute, it happened. Ronald Koeman floated in a hopeful ball, and with his trademark instinct, Kieft rose and sent a looping header into the far corner, a finish both awkward and sublime. It was the only goal of the match, and it sent the Dutch through to the semi-finals — a moment of salvation, a goal of ghostly grace, and one that would linger long in Dutch folklore.
Furthermore, the Netherlands went on to win the tournament, defeating hosts West Germany in the semi-finals and the Soviet Union in the final, with van Basten’s volley becoming the tournament’s iconic image. Yet without Kieft’s header in that group game, none of it might have happened.
After such heights, it was always going to be difficult to maintain momentum. At the 1990 World Cup in Italy, Kieft played four times, including a start against Ireland. He did score, finding the net in a 1–1 draw with Egypt, but the Dutch were a shadow of their Euro 1988 selves, and crashed out in the round of 16, defeated by arch-rivals West Germany.
Notwithstanding the disappointment, Kieft still had suitors, and in 1990, he tried his luck abroad again, this time in France with Girondins de Bordeaux. Yet, once again, the magic didn’t travel well. He scored just three goals in 26 league games, and the venture proved frustrating. In contrast to the familiarity of Dutch football, French football felt disjointed and uninspired for Kieft.
So it was, in 1991, that Kieft returned once more to PSV, the club that had brought out the best in him. Though no longer the focal point, he remained productive, scoring over 11 goals on average per season across three campaigns. By the time he retired in 1994, he had amassed a total of 158 goals in 264 Eredivisie games, a strike rate that stands among the finest in Dutch footballing history.
Furthermore, his uncanny consistency with his head — whether meeting corners, latching onto free-kicks, or ghosting in behind defenders — ensured that defenders feared him long after his boots were hung up.
PART THREE
Post-retirement, Kieft transitioned into punditry, bringing his frankness and insight to Dutch television. In 2001, he joined the now-legendary talk show Voetbal Inside, becoming a mainstay on Dutch football screens. Over time, his honesty, often brutally delivered, earned both admirers and critics, but he was never bland, never evasive — much like his playing days.
Moreover, his punditry stints spanned multiple networks — from RTL to Ziggo Sport, and later Veronica Inside, and through all these changes, he remained a respected, if occasionally divisive, voice in the Dutch football world.
However, behind the on-screen bravado and the off-the-pitch success story, Kieft was fighting a very different battle. In 2014, he published a startling and brutally honest autobiography, in which he revealed a long-standing battle with addiction — alcohol and cocaine — that had plagued him since retirement.
Due to the intense pressures of life after football, the loss of structure, and the weight of expectations, Kieft spiralled. His descent was slow, private, and devastating. But his decision to go public — and to seek treatment — won him admiration and sympathy in equal measure.
He emerged from that ordeal renewed, more at peace, and deeply humanized in the eyes of the public. His candour didn’t just redefine how people saw him — it highlighted the mental health crisis facing retired athletes across the globe.
Undoubtedly, as a gifted striker, one of the most effective headers of a ball in European football history, a man who scored over 200 goals in his club career, won multiple domestic titles, a European Cup, and was part of the Netherlands’ greatest-ever triumph.
But also, as a reminder that talent alone doesn’t guarantee an easy life. Kieft’s post-career battles revealed a fragility, a humanity, that few would associate with a man who once soared above defenders like an eagle on a mission.