ROBBEN:GRONINGENCAREER REVIEWED

Arjen Robben got his big break as a professional footballer while he was with Groningen in the Dutch league. The winger came through the youth teams at Groningen before making his debut towards the end of 2000. Robben was added to the first-team squad at Groningen by manager Jan van Dijk just before the away game against FC Twente in the league in November 2000, but he didn’t feature until the following month.

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Dutchman Arjen Robben played for the Groningen first team for the first time during the league game with RKC Waalwijk on December 3, 2000. He played the final eleven (11) minutes after coming on as a substitute for the injured Leonardo dos Santos. His impressive performances ensured that he became a regular in the Groningen first team.  Robben scored two goals in 18 starts for Groningen during his breakout season. He was subsequently named the best player at the club at the end of his breakout season. It was a sweet reward for him at the end of his first season with the Groningen first team.

Arjen Robben stayed with Groningen in the following season despite the interest in signing him from other teams in the Dutch top flight. He was able to improve on his attacking output at the end of his second season with the first team squad at Groningen. The winger scored six goals in 28 matches for the club.

Groningen found it hard to hold on to the services of Arjen Robben and he eventually signed for PSV Eindhoven ahead of the 2002/03 season. PSV paid €3.9m for his transfer.

At PSV, Robben scored 12 goals in 33 matches in his first season at the club as he formed a potent strike partnership with Serbian attacker MatejaKezman and they were both named co-best player. The attacking duo were nicknamed Batman and Robben due to the way they dealt with the opposition.