Ruud Gullit

Background

Gullit's path to stardom began not at Ajax, but on the streets of Amsterdam. Born Rudi Dil in a split-level room in the Jordaan district, he developed his skills playing street football alongside Frank Rijkaard after moving to Amsterdam Old West at age ten. He initially joined the DWS club, where he first adopted his father's surname, Gullit, believing it sounded more like a footballer's name. His professional journey started on 22 September 1978 with HFC Haarlem, coached by Barry Hughes.

At just 16 years and 11 months old, he became the youngest player in Eredivisie history. Although his first season ended with Haarlem at the bottom of the table, they won the Eerste Divisie title the following season, where Gullit was named the league's best player. In the 1981–82 season, Gullit scored what he later called his finest goal against Utrecht, running past four defenders and the goalkeeper. His performance earned him the nickname 'Dutch Duncan Edwards' from Hughes.

In total, he made 91 league appearances for Haarlem, scoring 32 goals. Despite interest from English sides Arsenal and Ipswich Town, managers Terry Neill and Bobby Robson turned him down, with Neill citing £30,000 as too much for the 'wild kid'. Consequently, Gullit moved to Feyenoord in 1982, making 85 league appearances and scoring 31 goals. It was at Feyenoord that he played alongside Johan Cruyff during the 1983–84 season and faced racial abuse from Scottish supporters at St Mirren in September 1983.