Antoine van der Linden (; born 17 March 1976) is a Dutch former

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played as a

central defender In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

. He amassed

Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is c ...

totals of 240 games and eight goals over the course of ten seasons, representing in the competition

Sparta Rotterdam Sparta Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional football club based in Rotterdam. Established on 1 April 1888, Sparta Rotterdam is the oldest professional football team in the Netherlands. Sparta currently compete in the Eredivisie, the top flight ...

Groningen Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...

and

Heracles Heracles ( ; grc-gre, Ἡρακλῆς, , glory/fame of Hera), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptive ...

Football career

Born in

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

, van der Linden started his career in 1997 with local

, appearing in an average of 12

games during three seasons. In the 2000 summer he joined

Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club has played home matches at ...

in England,Swindon defender eyes derby clash

BBC Sport BBC Sport is the sports division of the BBC, providing national sports coverage for BBC television, radio and online. The BBC holds the television and radio UK broadcasting rights to several sports, broadcasting the sport live or alongside flag ...

, 15 August 2000 featuring regularly for the

Football League One The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...

club. After only one year, van der Linden returned to his country, signing with

FC Emmen FC Emmen is a Dutch football club based in Emmen, Drenthe. They play in the Eredivisie, the top tier of Dutch football, after winning the 2021–22 Eerste Divisie title. Founded in 1925, the club entered the professional Eerste Divisie in 1985. I ...

of the

second division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

. In 2003, he returned to the top level, playing four solid years with

FC Groningen Football Club Groningen () is a Dutch professional association football club based in Groningen, province of Groningen. Founded on 16 June 1971 as the successor of GVAV, the team compete in the Eredivisie, the highest tier of Dutch football. G ...

and helping the side to the fifth position in the 2005–06 campaign, with the subsequent

qualification Qualification is either the process of qualifying for an achievement, or a credential attesting to that achievement, and may refer to: * Professional qualification, attributes developed by obtaining academic degrees or through professional exper ...

to the

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...

. In 2007, van der Linden moved to

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

with

C.S. Marítimo Club Sport Marítimo MH M, commonly known as Marítimo ( locally ), is a Portuguese sports club founded in Funchal, Madeira, in 1910. Marítimo is best known for its football team playing in Portugal's top-flight competition, the Primeira Liga. ...

: never an undisputed starter with the

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

ns, he did manage to appear regularly, but also experienced a brief spell with the reserves in his second and last year. In July 2009, 33-year-old van der Linden signed a one-year deal with

Heracles Almelo Heracles Almelo is a Dutch professional football club based in Almelo, founded in 1903. The club has won the Dutch national title twice, in 1927 and 1941. Heracles won the Eerste Divisie title during the 2004–05 season, gaining promotion to th ...

as a replacement for

Jan Wuytens Jan Wuytens (; born 9 June 1985) is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as a centre back. Career Wuytens is a defender who was born in Hasselt and began his career with PSV Eindhoven in 1997. He left after seven years and joined ...

who moved to

FC Utrecht Football Club Utrecht () is a Dutch professional football club based in Utrecht. The club competes in the Eredivisie, the top tier of Dutch football, and plays its home matches at the Stadion Galgenwaard. The club was formed in 1970 as a merge ...

. He helped the team to the sixth place in the top flight, contributing with one goal in a 4–1 home win over bottom-placed

RKC Waalwijk RKC Waalwijk () is a Dutch professional football club based in Waalwijk, that is currently competing in the Eredivisie. Its name is derived from 'Rooms Katholieke Combinatie' ('Roman Catholic Combination' in Dutch) and was established as a merger ...

References

External links

* http://www.swindon-town-fc.co.uk/Person.asp?PersonID=VANDERLA * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7399018.supporters-can-be-our-extra-man/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7381213.antoine-out/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7385776.we-must-do-it/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7382457.antoines-emergency-powers/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7390229.dutch-star-happy-with-a-new-role/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7386129.dont-panic/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7382943.man-of-the-match-antoine-van-der-linden/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7389894.any-role-will-do-for-the-dutchman/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7383497.antoine-so-gutted-at-his-late-miss/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7387717.we-can-beat-southend-where-is-it/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7381466.van-der-leaving/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7387872.what-price-antoine/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7389839.antoine-was-so-desperate-to-score/ * https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7388298.off-the-mark/
Stats at Voetbal International
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Linden, Antoine Van Der 1976 births Living people Footballers from Rotterdam Dutch men's footballers Men's association football defenders Eredivisie players Eerste Divisie players Derde Divisie players Sparta Rotterdam players FC Emmen players FC Groningen players Heracles Almelo players WKE players English Football League players Swindon Town F.C. players Primeira Liga players Segunda Divisão players C.S. Marítimo players Dutch expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Portugal Dutch expatriate sportspeople in Portugal