Robertus Leonardus "Rob" de Wit (born 8 September 1963) is a Dutch former football player.
Career De Wit made his debut for FC Utrecht in the 1982–83 season. He was a member of the Dutch squad at the 1983 FIFA World Youth Championship. He was transferred to Ajax Amsterdam in July 1984, as successor of left wing attacker Jesper Olsen, who left to Manchester United. At Ajax, he quickly became a crowd favourite, and played nearly all league matches in the 1984–1985 and 1985–1986 seasons.
In May 1985, still in his first season at Ajax, De Wit made his debut for the Dutch national team in a World Cup qualifier against Austria. Nearly two weeks later, De Wit scored the winning goal against Hungary (0–1 away win), which helped the Netherlands secure a play-off match against Belgium for the 1986 FIFA World Cup.
Health De Wit's career came to an abrupt end in 1986, due to a cerebral hemorrhage while on holiday in Spain. At first, the consequences didn't seem to be serious. After an unsuccessful treatment in Sweden, it became clear that Rob de Wit would never play professional football again. De Wit announced his retirement from professional football on 2 February 1988. On Saturday 28 May 1988, Ajax (with some additional players from FC Utrecht) and the Dutch national squad preparing for UEFA Euro 1988 played a testimonial match for Rob de Wit at De Meer Stadium, which the Dutch team won (3-1).
He sustained two more cerebral hemorrhages later in life: one in 1993 and one in January 2005.
De Wit played 106 league matches in four seasons, scoring 23 goals.
Career statistics + Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational CupContinentalTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsUtrecht1982–83Eredivisie91——911983–8434620—366Total43720—457Ajax1984–85Eredivisie31730303771985–8632961204010Total631691507717Career total106231115013224
International + Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsNetherlands198553198630Total83
Scores and results list the Netherlands' goal tally first, score column indicates score after each De Wit goal.
+ List of international goals scored by Rob de WitNo.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition1 14 May 1985 Népstadion, Budapest, Hungary 1–0 1–0 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification2 4 September 1985 Abe Lenstra Stadion, Heerenveen, Netherlands 1–0 1–0 Friendly3 20 November 1985 De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands 2–0 2–1 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification
Honours Ajax Eredivisie: 1984-85 KNVB Cup: 1985-86
References
External links Statistics of Rob de Wit for the Netherlands national football team