Down the years, the Netherlands have made a habit of producing clinical strikers. At one time or another, the likes of Robin van Persie, Dennis Bergkamp and Faas Wilkes have all donned the famous orange shirt.
Two more that also achieved that feat - scoring 75 goals for the Oranje between them - was Patrick Kluivert and Ruud van Nistelrooy, both of whom were born on this day back in 1976. Yet, despite being the same age, the duo rarely represented their country together, with Van Nistelrooy practically replacing Kluivert from 2004 onwards.
Patrick Kluivert
Born in Amsterdam to Surinamese parents, Kluivert rose to prominence as a member of the young Ajax side that won the Champions League in 1995. He came off the bench in the final against AC Milan to score what would prove to be the trophy-clinching goal.
Moves to Milan and Barcelona followed, before short stints were spent with Newcastle United, Valencia, PSV Eindhoven and Lille.
All the while, the frontman was a potent force in the Dutch attack. His first goal came during a Euro 1996 qualifier against Malta and a further 39 would follow, making him Holland's leading goalscorer of all time - a record that stood until recently when Van Persie leapfrogged him.
Perhaps his best spell at international level came at Euro 2000 when he ended the tournament as the leading goalscorer courtesy of his five strikes - a haul which included a hat-trick during a 6-1 victory against Yugoslavia in Rotterdam.
Ruud van Nistelrooy
Born and raised in the Southern Dutch city of Oss, Van Nistelrooy started his career as a midfield player, but he was converted into a centre-forward by his first professional club Den Bosch. He then scored goals on a regular basis for Heerenveen and PSV, which earned Van Nistelrooy a £19m move to Manchester United in 2001.
He scored 150 goals for the Red Devils before linking up with Real Madrid, followed by brief spells with Hamburg and Malaga.
As far as the Dutch national side is concerned, Van Nistelrooy found the net 35 times from his 70 caps. Like Kluivert, his most telling impact came at a European Championships, although in his case it was the 2004 version in Portugal. The striker scored four goals over the course of the competition - only Milan Baros scored more times.
Liam Apicella
