Luigi Bruins (born 9 March 1987) is a Dutch professional

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 plays as an

attacking midfielder A midfielder is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As #Cent ...

for

VV Smitshoek VV Smitshoek is a football club from Barendrecht, Netherlands. It plays in the Saturday Hoofdklasse since 2016. History The Voetbalvereniging Smitshoek was founded on 23 June 1960. In 2005, a Smitshoek game against VV BMT from The Hague evolved ...

. After being declined by

Feyenoord Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional football club in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the club changed to various names before settling on being called after its ...

at the age of six, the Rotterdam-born went through the complete

Excelsior Excelsior, a Latin comparative word often translated as "ever upward" or "even higher", may refer to: Arts and entertainment Literature and poetry * "Excelsior" (Longfellow), an 1841 poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow * ''Excelsior'' (Macedo ...

youth academy. Bruins made his first team debut in the season 2004–05 and managed to win the Eerste Divisie title in the subsequent season. After a successful Eredivisie debut, Bruins signed a four-year deal with the club that first declined him, Feyenoord. Bruins was part of the Netherlands U21 squad winning the

UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship The UEFA European Under-21 Championship, the UEFA Under-21 Championship or simply the Euro Under-21, is a biennial football competition contested by the European men's under-21 national teams of the UEFA member associations. Since 1992, the compe ...

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

Early life

Bruins was 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 ...

South Holland South Holland ( nl, Zuid-Holland ) is a province of the Netherlands with a population of over 3.7 million as of October 2021 and a population density of about , making it the country's most populous province and one of the world's most densely ...

, the Netherlands.

Club career

Youth career

Bruins started playing football at the age of six. As the

-born was aiming for the highest level, he signed up for a talent practice session at

. However, Feyenoord decided not to invite Bruins to join the youth academy. Eventually, Bruins was asked to join

instead. Bruins went through the complete Excelsior youth academy, until he made his professional debut in 2005.

Excelsior (2004–2007)

Breakthrough (2004–2006)

Bruins made his professional debut for

in the season 2004–05. On 28 January 2005, Bruins replaced

Santi Kolk Santiago Torti "Santi" Kolk (born 2 October 1981) is a Dutch former professional footballer. He currently works as a football agent. He mostly played as a forward during his career. Kolk emerged as a talent from the ADO Den Haag academy in 199 ...

in the 78th minute of the

Eerste Divisie The Eerste Divisie (, en, First Division) is the second-highest tier of football in the Netherlands. It is linked with the top-level Eredivisie and with the third-level Tweede Divisie via promotion/relegation systems. It is also known as the ...

away match against

FC Eindhoven FC Eindhoven is a Dutch football club based in Eindhoven, North Brabant. They currently play in the Eerste Divisie (second tier of Dutch football), and are one of two professional clubs which are based in the city of Eindhoven, the other one bei ...

(3–0). It was the first and only match Bruins played in his first season. Bruins had his breakthrough in the season 2005–06. Under the management of the new Excelsior coach

Mario Been Marinus Antonius Been (born 11 December 1963) is a Dutch football manager and former professional player. As a footballer, Been played for Feyenoord, Pisa, Roda JC, Heerenveen, FC Tirol Innsbruck and Excelsior. He played in an attacking midfiel ...

, Bruins was positioned on his favorite

right midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

position in a 4–3–3 system. Bruins scored his first professional goal in the season opening away match against

Cambuur Leeuwarden SC Cambuur, also known as Cambuur Leeuwarden, or simply Cambuur, () is a Dutch football club from the city of Leeuwarden formed on 19 June 1964. They currently play in the Eredivisie, the top tier of Dutch football, after winning the 2020–21 Ee ...

(0–1) on 12 August 2005. From the start of the season, Excelsior unexpectedly battled for the Eerste Divisie championship. When Excelsior won the home match against championship favorite

VVV-Venlo VVV-Venlo (, ''VVV'' stands for ''Venlose Voetbal Vereniging'' meaning "Venlo Football Club") is a Dutch football club from Venlo, a city on the border with Germany. They play in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of Dutch football, following ...

(3–1) on 31 March 2006, the third club from Rotterdam secured the Eerste Divisie 2005–06 title. Bruins played an important role in Excelsior's

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 ...

promotion, scoring 4 goals in 35 matches.

Eredivisie (2006–2007)

After Excelsior's surprising promotion, the Rotterdam club was an almost certain relegation candidate for the season 2006–07. The club had the lowest Eredivisie budget and only few players with Eredivisie experience. Bruins made his

debut on 19 August 2006, in the home match against

Roda JC Sportvereniging Roda Juliana Combinatie Kerkrade (; Ripuarian: ), also known as Roda JC Kerkrade () or commonly Roda JC or Roda, is a Dutch professional football club based in Kerkrade, Netherlands. Roda JC Kerkrade plays in the Eerste Divisie. ...

(0–1). Bruins scored his first Eredivisie goals on 9 September 2006, as he scored two

penalty kick A penalty shot or penalty kick is a play used in several sports whereby a goal is attempted during untimed play. Depending on the sport, when a player commits certain types of penalties, the opposition is awarded a penalty shot or kick attempt. ...

s in the home match against

SC Heerenveen Sportclub Heerenveen (; West Frisian: Sportklub It Hearrenfean) is a Dutch football club from Heerenveen. They currently play in the Eredivisie, the top level of football in the Netherlands. History Sportclub Heerenveen was founded on 20 July ...

(3–1). Excelsior finished the Eredivisie on a 16th place, which meant they had to compete in the promotion/relegation playoffs. After wins against

BV Veendam Sportclub Veendam () was a Dutch professional association football club based in Veendam, province of Groningen. Founded on 4 September 1894 as Look-Out, it became P.J. Veendam in 1909, Veendam in 1910, SC Veendam in 1974, BV Veendam in 1997 a ...

and

RBC Roosendaal RBC, commonly known under its previous official name RBC Roosendaal, is a football club based in Roosendaal, Netherlands. RBC currently plays in the seventh-tier Tweede Klasse after a bankruptcy in 2011, restarting the club in tenth tier Vijfde Kl ...

, Excelsior remained in the top tier. While at Excelsior, Bruins was linked to various domestic and foreign clubs. Besides the Dutch sides

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Greek ...

, AZ and PSV, also

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...

were interested in the talented midfielder. However, on 26 January 2006,

announced the signing of Bruins. The youngster would join the club for the season 2007–08, signing a four-year deal.

Feyenoord (2007–2011)

Left winger (2007–2008)

Bruins transfer to Feyenoord was overshadowed by the arrival of experienced players like

Roy Makaay Rudolphus Antonius "Roy" Makaay (born 9 March 1975) is a Dutch former footballer and a coach who is currently first team coach at Rangers. As a striker, he was known for his goal-scoring ability as a result of his "aerial prowess and quick driv ...

from

Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), also known as FC Bayern (), Bayern Munich, or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional men's football team, which pla ...

Giovanni van Bronckhorst Giovanni Christiaan van Bronckhorst (born 5 February 1975) is a Dutch football manager and former player, who was most recently the manager of Scottish Premiership club Rangers. Formerly a midfielder, he moved to left-back later in his career. ...

from

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

and

Kevin Hofland Kevin Hofland (born 7 June 1979) is a Dutch professional football manager and former player, and was last the head coach of Eerste Divisie club Willem II. A centre back during his career, Hofland played 15 active seasons in which he amassed Ere ...

from

VfL Wolfsburg Verein für Leibesübungen Wolfsburg e. V., commonly known as VfL Wolfsburg () or Wolfsburg, is a German professional sports club based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony. The club grew out of a multi-sports club for Volkswagen workers in the city of W ...

. Due to the heavy competition within the team, it was expected the talented Bruins would mainly play a role as substitute. However, after the departure of

Royston Drenthe Royston Ricky Drenthe (born 8 April 1987) is a Dutch footballer who plays for Spanish club Real Murcia. Although primarily a left winger, he has also played as a left-back. Drenthe started his professional career with Eredivisie side Feyenoord i ...

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

, Feyenoord coach

Bert van Marwijk Lambertus van Marwijk (; born 19 May 1952) is a Dutch football manager who was recently the head coach of the United Arab Emirates national team. As a player, he played for the Go Ahead Eagles, AZ, MVV and Fortuna Sittard amongst other clubs a ...

promoted Bruins to a first team regular, filling in the

left winger A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

position. Bruins played 27 Eredivisie matches in his first Feyenoord season, scoring six goals.

Struggle (2008–2011)

After various minor injuries, Bruins slowly started to lose his first team regular status in the season 2008–09. Due to lack of playing time, player agent Sietje Mouch stated it was better for Bruins to temporary leave Feyenoord on loan in the winter transfer window of January 2010.

Red Bull Salzburg (2011)

In October 2011, he signed a contract with Red Bull Salzburg until the end of the 2011–12 season. His contract was cancelled after only three games and he left Salzburg at the end of 2011.

Return to Excelsior (2012)

Luigi Bruins went on trial at

Rangers F.C. Rangers Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the Govan district of Glasgow which plays in the Scottish Premiership. Although not its official name, it is often referred to as Glasgow Rangers outside Scotland. The fou ...

and was linked with

. On 9 March 2012, Bruins signed with his former team

until the end of the season.

Nice (2013–2014)

He signed a contract with

OGC Nice Olympique Gymnaste Club Nice Côte d'Azur (), commonly referred to as OGC Nice or simply Nice, is a French professional football club based in Nice. The club was founded in 1904 and currently plays in Ligue 1, the top tier of French football. ...

on 15 January 2013. In one and a half years' time, he played 22 matches for the French side, in which he scored once. After his contract had not been extended, he left the club as a free agent in June 2014.

Second return to Excelsior (2014–2021)

On 13 September 2014, it was announced that Bruins had returned to

for the third time. He signed a deal until the end of the season.

Amateur level

In July 2021, he joined fifth-tier

Hoofdklasse The Vierde Divisie, formerly known as Hoofdklasse () is the second-highest league of amateur football in the Netherlands, and the fifth tier in general. Background The league is divided into two sections: Saturday and Sunday. This is a result of ...

club

for a three-year term.

International career

Youth teams

Netherlands U21

Bruins was part of the Netherlands U21 winning the

2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship The UEFA European Under-21 Championship 2007 were held from 10 June 2007 to 23 June 2007. It was the 16th staging of UEFA's European Under-21 Championship. Summary For the first time, a host nation was chosen ahead of the competition – the Nethe ...

. Jong Oranje retained its

2006 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship 2006 UEFA European Under-21 Championship was the 15th staging of UEFA's European Under-21 Championship. In December 2005, Portugal was selected to host the finals of the competition, which took place from 23 May–4 June 2006. The tournament was w ...

title in style with a 4–1 win over Serbia U21 in the final. Bruins scored the fourth Dutch goal, securing the victory. In the summer of 2008, Bruins missed out on a place in the Netherlands Olympic team. He was mentioned in the pre-selection, but wasn't part of the final 18.

Career statistics

Honours

Excelsior *

: 2005–06 Feyenoord *

KNVB Cup The KNVB Beker (; en, KNVB Cup), branded as the TOTO KNVB Beker for sponsorship reasons, is a competition in the Netherlands organized by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) since 1898. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. Ou ...

: 2007–08 Netherlands U21 *

References

External links

* * *
Luigi Bruins
at

Voetbal International ''Voetbal International'' (VI) is a Dutch football magazine. It is the oldest Dutch football magazine that is still running. History and Profile ''Voetbal International'' was established in 1965. VI was one of the founding members of ESM but l ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bruins, Luigi 1987 births Living people Footballers from Rotterdam Dutch footballers Netherlands under-21 international footballers Dutch people of Italian descent Association football midfielders Eredivisie players Eerste Divisie players Ligue 1 players Championnat National 2 players Championnat National 3 players Austrian Football Bundesliga players Vierde Divisie players Excelsior Rotterdam players Feyenoord players FC Red Bull Salzburg players OGC Nice players Dutch expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Austria Expatriate footballers in France Dutch expatriate sportspeople in Austria Dutch expatriate sportspeople in France