Damian van Bruggen (born 18 March 1996) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays for Danish Superliga club Vejle Boldklub. Mainly a centre-back, he can also play as a defensive midfielder or a full-back.
.jpg) Van Bruggen in 2018 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 18 March 1996 | ||
| Place of birth | Utrecht, Netherlands | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Centre-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Vejle | ||
| Number | 14 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2011 | Almere City | ||
| 2011–2014 | Ajax | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2014–2016 | Jong Ajax | 60 | (2) |
| 2016–2018 | Jong PSV | 36 | (0) |
| 2017–2018 | → VVV-Venlo (loan) | 26 | (2) |
| 2018–2020 | VVV-Venlo | 22 | (0) |
| 2020 | Inter Zaprešić | 16 | (0) |
| 2020–2022 | Slaven Belupo | 49 | (1) |
| 2022 | Olimpija Ljubljana | 16 | (0) |
| 2022–2024 | Almere City | 68 | (1) |
| 2024– | Vejle | 9 | (1) |
| International career | |||
| 2011–2012 | Netherlands U16 | 4 | (0) |
| 2012–2013 | Netherlands U17 | 11 | (2) |
| 2013 | Netherlands U18 | 3 | (0) |
| 2014–2015 | Netherlands U19 | 10 | (2) |
| 2016 | Netherlands U20 | 3 | (0) |
| 2016–2017 | Netherlands U21 | 2 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13:47, 1 January 2024 (UTC) | |||
Club career
editVan Bruggen moved from Almere City to the Ajax youth academy at the start of the 2011–12 season.[1] In March 2013, Van Bruggen signed his first professional contract with Ajax, at the age of 16.[2]
Van Bruggen made his professional debut for Jong Ajax as a 61st-minute substitute for Ricardo van Rhijn in an Eerste Divisie match against Fortuna Sittard on 16 August 2014.[3]
He moved on a season-long loan to Eredivisie club VVV-Venlo in August 2017.[4] After a successful season, he joined the club on a permanent deal in May 2018.[5]
Between 2020 and 2022, Van Bruggen played for Croatian clubs Inter Zaprešić and Slaven Belupo, then briefly joined Slovenian side Olimpija Ljubljana in February 2022.[6][7][8] He returned to his native Netherlands in July 2022, rejoining his first club, Almere City.[9][10] His stint at the club proved rewarding as he played a crucial role in their historic promotion to the Eredivisie during the 2022–23 season, scoring once in 43 league appearances, including the play-offs. Under Van Bruggen's captaincy, the team secured their promotion after a victory over Emmen in the play-off finals.[11]
On 5 July 2024, Danish Superliga club Vejle Boldklub confirmed that they had signed van Bruggen on a deal until 30 June 2026.[12]
Career statistics
edit- As of match played 19 May 2024[13]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Jong Ajax | 2014–15 | Eerste Divisie | 31 | 2 | — | — | 31 | 2 | ||
| 2015–16 | Eerste Divisie | 29 | 0 | — | — | 29 | 0 | |||
| Total | 60 | 2 | — | — | 60 | 2 | ||||
| Jong PSV | 2016–17 | Eerste Divisie | 36 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 0 | ||
| VVV-Venlo (loan) | 2017–18 | Eredivisie | 26 | 2 | 3 | 1 | — | 29 | 3 | |
| VVV-Venlo | 2018–19 | Eredivisie | 18 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 20 | 0 | |
| 2019–20 | Eredivisie | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | ||
| Total | 22 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 24 | 0 | |||
| Inter Zaprešić | 2019–20 | Croatian Football League | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 16 | 0 | |
| Slaven Belupo | 2020–21 | Croatian Football League | 28 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | 31 | 1 | |
| 2021–22 | Croatian Football League | 21 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 24 | 0 | ||
| Total | 49 | 1 | 6 | 0 | — | 55 | 1 | |||
| Olimpija Ljubljana | 2021–22 | Slovenian PrvaLiga | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 16 | 0 | |
| Almere City | 2022–23 | Eerste Divisie | 37 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6[a] | 0 | 44 | 1 |
| 2023–24 | Eerste Divisie | 31 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 32 | 0 | ||
| Total | 68 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 77 | 1 | ||
| Vejle Boldklub | 2024–25 | Danish Superliga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| Career total | 293 | 6 | 14 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 313 | 7 | ||
- ^ Appearances in Eredivisie promotion/relegation playoffs
References
edit- ^ "Van Bruggen dolblij met overstap naar Ajax". Almerecity.nl. 12 February 2011. Archived from the original on 22 August 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- ^ "Ajax contracteert jeugdspelers". Ajax.nl. 15 March 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- ^ "Fortuna Sittard vs. Jong Ajax - 16 August 2014". Soccerway. 16 August 2014. Retrieved 16 August 2014.
- ^ "Van Bruggen verruilt PSV voor VVV-Venlo". Voetbal International (in Dutch). 11 August 2017. Archived from the original on 1 May 2018. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
- ^ "VVV neemt Van Bruggen definitief over van PSV". NOS (in Dutch). 28 May 2018. Archived from the original on 31 March 2023. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
- ^ "Petrovic haalt Van Bruggen weg bij VVV-Venlo". Voetbal International (in Dutch). 18 January 2020. Archived from the original on 21 June 2023. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
- ^ "Čović, Prce, van Bruggen, Maglica, Boakye i Mlinar novi igrači Slaven Belupa". NK Slaven Belupo (Press release) (in Croatian). 9 August 2020. Archived from the original on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
- ^ "U Skenderov široki zagrljaj: Damian van Bruggen novi je igrač Olimpije iz Ljubljane". Telesport (in Slovenian). 16 February 2022. Archived from the original on 16 February 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
- ^ "Damian van Bruggen keert na elf jaar terug in Almere". Almere City FC (Press release) (in Dutch). 14 July 2022. Archived from the original on 16 July 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
- ^ Wit, Herman de (15 July 2022). "Damian van Brugge terug op oude nest". Omroep Almere (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 3 October 2023. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
- ^ "Almere City debuteert volgend seizoen in eredivisie: 'Geweldig ontwikkeld'". NOS (in Dutch). 11 June 2023. Archived from the original on 11 June 2023. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
- ^ "Vejle Boldklub henter hollandsk profil". Vejle Boldklub (Press release) (in Danish). 5 July 2024. Archived from the original on 6 July 2024. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
- ^ Damian van Bruggen at Soccerway
External links
edit- Damian van Bruggen at Soccerway
- Damian van Bruggen at WorldFootball.net
- Netherlands profile