“I remember the moment on the pitch when the referee blew the full-time whistle, realising what we had achieved. I was like, ‘Wow, we did it!’ Nobody expected us to win it; we were like the great unknown. It is such a proud feeling winning that cup. It’s the highest possible honour, it’s incredible.
“It does something to you when you see the trophy standing there. You think, ‘It’s ours now. I can lift it in a moment.’ You can’t wait for that moment – it’s what you dream about as a little boy. The trophy is a bit heavy, not too much, but it’s big, so you have to figure out how to hold it to prevent it being in front of your face!
“I remember walking with the trophy with my brother Frank over the pitch and the athletics track. That was really great. Looking back, that was such a proud moment, for our parents as well, us being together there, two boys from Grootebroek, holding up that cup with the big ears.
“A few years before we won it, there was the great Milan side with the three Dutch players Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard. The European Cups they won are very clear in my memory, and it was very special to win the trophy yourself a few years after that.
“I remember the moment on the pitch when the referee blew the full-time whistle, realising what we had achieved. I was like, ‘Wow, we did it!’ Nobody expected us to win it; we were like the great unknown. It is such a proud feeling winning that cup. It’s the highest possible honour, it’s incredible.
“It does something to you when you see the trophy standing there. You think, ‘It’s ours now. I can lift it in a moment.’ You can’t wait for that moment – it’s what you dream about as a little boy. The trophy is a bit heavy, not too much, but it’s big, so you have to figure out how to hold it to prevent it being in front of your face!
“I remember walking with the trophy with my brother Frank over the pitch and the athletics track. That was really great. Looking back, that was such a proud moment, for our parents as well, us being together there, two boys from Grootebroek, holding up that cup with the big ears.
“A few years before we won it, there was the great Milan side with the three Dutch players Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard. The European Cups they won are very clear in my memory, and it was very special to win the trophy yourself a few years after that.
“Of course, we took pictures with family and friends, but it’s funny that you always hear from the people who were there – such as in the hotel that evening – that they have the moment engraved in their memories much more than we do. The next day, we went on a boat trip along the canals of Amsterdam, so we had the trophy in our hands again then. That was an incredible experience, seeing how busy it was, with people jumping into the water. That was extraordinary. That’s when you realise what you have done, what it means to those people.
“Louis van Gaal also let the people who work in the background have time with the trophy, such as leaving it for a few days in places like the laundry room. He acknowledged the importance of the people working there, as they contributed to our success as well. The work they did was not always visible from the outside, but they were very important and he wanted to show them that their efforts were appreciated.”
“I remember the moment on the pitch when the referee blew the full-time whistle, realising what we had achieved. I was like, ‘Wow, we did it!’ Nobody expected us to win it; we were like the great unknown. It is such a proud feeling winning that cup. It’s the highest possible honour, it’s incredible.
“It does something to you when you see the trophy standing there. You think, ‘It’s ours now. I can lift it in a moment.’ You can’t wait for that moment – it’s what you dream about as a little boy. The trophy is a bit heavy, not too much, but it’s big, so you have to figure out how to hold it to prevent it being in front of your face!
“I remember walking with the trophy with my brother Frank over the pitch and the athletics track. That was really great. Looking back, that was such a proud moment, for our parents as well, us being together there, two boys from Grootebroek, holding up that cup with the big ears.
“A few years before we won it, there was the great Milan side with the three Dutch players Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard. The European Cups they won are very clear in my memory, and it was very special to win the trophy yourself a few years after that.
“I remember the moment on the pitch when the referee blew the full-time whistle, realising what we had achieved. I was like, ‘Wow, we did it!’ Nobody expected us to win it; we were like the great unknown. It is such a proud feeling winning that cup. It’s the highest possible honour, it’s incredible.
“It does something to you when you see the trophy standing there. You think, ‘It’s ours now. I can lift it in a moment.’ You can’t wait for that moment – it’s what you dream about as a little boy. The trophy is a bit heavy, not too much, but it’s big, so you have to figure out how to hold it to prevent it being in front of your face!
“I remember walking with the trophy with my brother Frank over the pitch and the athletics track. That was really great. Looking back, that was such a proud moment, for our parents as well, us being together there, two boys from Grootebroek, holding up that cup with the big ears.
“A few years before we won it, there was the great Milan side with the three Dutch players Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard. The European Cups they won are very clear in my memory, and it was very special to win the trophy yourself a few years after that.
“I remember the moment on the pitch when the referee blew the full-time whistle, realising what we had achieved. I was like, ‘Wow, we did it!’ Nobody expected us to win it; we were like the great unknown. It is such a proud feeling winning that cup. It’s the highest possible honour, it’s incredible.
“It does something to you when you see the trophy standing there. You think, ‘It’s ours now. I can lift it in a moment.’ You can’t wait for that moment – it’s what you dream about as a little boy. The trophy is a bit heavy, not too much, but it’s big, so you have to figure out how to hold it to prevent it being in front of your face!
“I remember walking with the trophy with my brother Frank over the pitch and the athletics track. That was really great. Looking back, that was such a proud moment, for our parents as well, us being together there, two boys from Grootebroek, holding up that cup with the big ears.
“A few years before we won it, there was the great Milan side with the three Dutch players Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard. The European Cups they won are very clear in my memory, and it was very special to win the trophy yourself a few years after that.
“Of course, we took pictures with family and friends, but it’s funny that you always hear from the people who were there – such as in the hotel that evening – that they have the moment engraved in their memories much more than we do. The next day, we went on a boat trip along the canals of Amsterdam, so we had the trophy in our hands again then. That was an incredible experience, seeing how busy it was, with people jumping into the water. That was extraordinary. That’s when you realise what you have done, what it means to those people.
“Louis van Gaal also let the people who work in the background have time with the trophy, such as leaving it for a few days in places like the laundry room. He acknowledged the importance of the people working there, as they contributed to our success as well. The work they did was not always visible from the outside, but they were very important and he wanted to show them that their efforts were appreciated.”
“I remember the moment on the pitch when the referee blew the full-time whistle, realising what we had achieved. I was like, ‘Wow, we did it!’ Nobody expected us to win it; we were like the great unknown. It is such a proud feeling winning that cup. It’s the highest possible honour, it’s incredible.
“It does something to you when you see the trophy standing there. You think, ‘It’s ours now. I can lift it in a moment.’ You can’t wait for that moment – it’s what you dream about as a little boy. The trophy is a bit heavy, not too much, but it’s big, so you have to figure out how to hold it to prevent it being in front of your face!
“I remember walking with the trophy with my brother Frank over the pitch and the athletics track. That was really great. Looking back, that was such a proud moment, for our parents as well, us being together there, two boys from Grootebroek, holding up that cup with the big ears.
“A few years before we won it, there was the great Milan side with the three Dutch players Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard. The European Cups they won are very clear in my memory, and it was very special to win the trophy yourself a few years after that.
