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jimmy floyd hasselbaink will compete in this year’s edition of strictly come danceAdding to the rich history of footballers who have competed on the show.
upon joining strictlyThe 53-year-old Dutchman said: “Swapping the pitch for ballroom is definitely not something I’ve done before, but I’m looking forward to tackling a fun challenge! Bring a new type of footwork, hopefully missing an own goal.”
Born in Suriname in 1972, Hasselbaink moved with his family to the Netherlands at the age of six, where he first began playing football.
However, Hasselbaink’s youth career was plagued with legal and disciplinary issues when he became associated with gangs.
After being dismissed from his first professional club, Telstar, due to constant delays and being released from AZ Alkmaar, he found success in Portugal, initially signing for newly promoted Campãoirense.
It is here that Hasselbaink, whose legal first name is Jerel, earned his nickname. The club president decided to keep his signing a secret and instead told the press that he had signed a player named “Jimmy”. He subsequently signed with Boavista and enjoyed the best spell of his career so far, scoring 24 goals in 38 games.
In the summer of 1997, Leeds United manager George Graham signed Hasselbaink for £2m. After a slow start in England, Hasselbaink soon found himself a hero at Elland Road and became joint winner of the Premier League Golden Boot (shared with Michael Owen and Dwight Yorke) in just his second season.
Hasselbaink moved to Spanish team Atlético Madrid in 1999 but despite scoring 33 goals the club was relegated from Spain’s top flight.
He returned to England in 2000, signing for Chelsea, where he had the best and longest spell of his entire career. Hasselbaink again won the Premier League Golden Boot in the 2000/01 season and scored 87 goals in 177 games for the West London side.
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After four seasons with Chelsea, he went on to play for Middlesbrough, Charlton Athletic and Cardiff City, the latter of which saw him play in the losing FA Cup Final. Hasselbaink, who scored nine goals in 27 games for the Netherlands national team, including an appearance at the 1998 World Cup, retired in 2008.
Hasselbaink soon transitioned into a coaching role, working first with Chelsea’s under-16 team and Nottingham Forest. He took up his first managerial post in 2013, taking charge of Royal Antwerp of Belgium.
In the summer of 2014, he was appointed as Burton Albion manager and produced the best performance of his managerial career, winning League Two and securing the Staffordshire side their first promotion to the third tier of English football.
Several unsuccessful stints as manager at Queens Park Rangers and Northampton Town followed, as well as a return to Burton, which proved to be his last managerial job to date.
Hasselbaink’s final official role in football was working with the England national team as an assistant coach alongside his old Middlesbrough teammate Gareth Southgate.