View source for Ruud Geels

{{Short description|Dutch footballer (1948–2023)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2021}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Ruud Geels
| image = Ruud Geels 1974c.jpg
| caption = Geels in 1974
| full_name = Geertruida Maria Geels
| birth_date = {{birth date|1948|7|28|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Haarlem]], Netherlands
| death_date = {{death date and age|2023|11|18|1948|7|28|df=y}}
| death_place = [[Haarlem]], Netherlands
| height = 
| position = [[Striker (association football)|Striker]]
| youthyears1 = 
| youthclubs1 = RKVV DSS
| youthyears2 = 
| youthclubs2 = RKSV Onze Gezellen
| years1 = 1965–1966
| years2 = 1966–1970
| years3 = 1970–1972
| years4 = 1972–1974
| years5 = 1974–1978
| years6 = 1978–1979
| years7 = 1979–1981
| years8 = 1981–1982
| years9 = 1982–1984
| years10 = 1964–1984
| clubs1 = [[SC Telstar|Telstar]]
| clubs2 = [[Feyenoord|Feijenoord]]
| clubs3 = [[Go Ahead Eagles]]
| clubs4 = [[Club Brugge KV|Club Brugge]]
| clubs5 = [[AFC Ajax|Ajax]]
| clubs6 = [[R.S.C. Anderlecht|Anderlecht]]
| clubs7 = [[Sparta Rotterdam|Sparta]]
| clubs8 = [[PSV Eindhoven|PSV]]
| clubs9 = [[NAC Breda|NAC]]
| caps1 = 8
| caps2 = 89
| caps3 = 62
| caps4 = 53
| caps5 = 132
| caps6 = 28
| caps7 = 48
| caps8 = 32
| caps9 = 35
| totalcaps = 487
| goals1 = 5
| goals2 = 46
| goals3 = 35
| goals4 = 28
| goals5 = 123
| goals6 = 25
| goals7 = 35
| goals8 = 15
| goals9 = 12
| totalgoals = 324
| nationalyears1 = 1974–1981
| nationalteam1 = [[Netherlands national football team|Netherlands]]
| nationalcaps1 = 20
| nationalgoals1 = 11
| medaltemplates = {{MedalCountry|{{fb|NED}}}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[FIFA World Cup]]}}
{{Medal|RU|[[1974 FIFA World Cup|1974 West Germany]]|}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[UEFA European Championship]]}}
{{Medal|3rd|[[UEFA Euro 1976|1976 Yugoslavia]]|}}
}}

'''Geertruida Maria''' "'''Ruud'''" '''Geels''' ({{IPA|nl|ɣeːrˈtrœydaː maːˈrijaː ryt ˈxeːls}}; 28 July 1948 – 18 November 2023) was a Dutch professional [[association football|footballer]] who played as a [[striker (association football)|striker]]. He obtained 20 [[cap (sport)|caps]] for the [[Netherlands national football team|Netherlands national team]], scoring eleven goals, in the 1970s. A prolific goalscorer, Geels was known for his heading skills. He is also known for being the first of only two footballers (the second being [[Ronald Koeman]]) to play for the [[Big Three (Netherlands)|big three in Dutch football]] - [[AFC Ajax|Ajax]], [[PSV Eindhoven|PSV]] and [[Feyenoord]].

==Club career==

Geels was born in [[Haarlem]]. Before joining [[Telstar]], he played for amateur football clubs DSS and Onze Gezellen. After eight games for Telstar, Geels was sold to Feyenoord. Geels scored 46 goals in 89 league games for Feyenoord, but also faced competition for the striker position with Swede [[Ove Kindvall]]. He won the Eredivisie and the KVNB Cup in 1968-69, and the European Cup in 1969-70, although he was not part of the squad for the final against Celtic.

In 1970, Geels left Feyenoord for Go Ahead Eagles, where he played for two seasons, scoring 35 goals. In the summer of 1972, Geels left his native Netherlands for Belgium to play for [[Club Brugge]], scoring 28 goals for the Bruges club. He returned to the Netherlands after the [[1974 World Cup]] to play for [[AFC Ajax|Ajax]]. In the Amsterdam club, Geels scored 123 goals in 131 league matches, and was the Eredivisie's top scorer for four consecutive seasons, winning the 1976–77 season in his third consecutive season as top scorer of the league. He was also top scorer in the [[1975–76 UEFA Cup]].

Geels returned to Belgium in 1978 to play for [[R.S.C. Anderlecht|Anderlecht]], where he won the [[1978 UEFA Super Cup]] against Liverpool. He returned to the Netherlands in 1979 to play for Sparta Rotterdam, scoring 35 goals in two seasons, while also becoming for the fifth time the best Eredivisie top scorer in 1980-81.

He then signed for [[PSV Eindhoven]] in 1981, making him the first player to play for the Big Three in the Netherlands. He scored 15 goals in 25 league games in his first season, but only played four games in his second season with the Eindhoven club, never scoring any goals. Geels was then sold to NAC Breda in 1982, netting six goals in 22 league games, but after NAC's relegation, he never played again for the club, and his contract was terminated in 1984.

==International career==

Geels played for the [[Netherlands national football team|Netherlands]] 20 times and scored 11 goals. He was called to represent his country in the [[1974 World Cup]], but did not play a single match. Geels later described the World Cup as one of the worst weeks of his life due to daily harassment from [[Wim Suurbier]] and [[Ruud Krol]], with whom he would play with at Ajax after the World Cup. He helped the Netherlands win a third place at the [[UEFA Euro 1976]] by scoring two goals against [[Yugoslavia national football team|Yugoslavia]].

==Style of play==

A fast, agile striker, Geels was one of the most prolific goalscorers in Europe in the 70's. He was renowned for his heading skills and aerial abilities. In an interview with Voetbal International, Geels explained that he practiced his heading skills at Telstar by using an old English head gallow, noting that "You always have to be a beat ahead of your opponent". In a NRC article about Geels, Jaap Bloembergen wrote that no one jumped higher and headed a ball harder than Geels.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-11-18 |title=Niemand sprong hoger en kopte harder dan Ruud Geels |url=https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2023/11/18/niemand-sprong-hoger-en-kopte-harder-dan-ruud-geels-a4181337 |website=NRC.nl |language=nl}}</ref>

==Personal life==

Geels was the father of Luciène Geels, who played for the Dutch women's softball team for many years and participated in the 1996 Summer Olympics.

Geels died in 18 November 2023, at the age of 75, having suffered from [[Alzheimer's disease]] for a long time.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-11-18 |title=Topschutter Ruud Geels op 75-jarige leeftijd overleden |url=https://www.espn.nl/voetbal/artikel/_/id/12885027/topschutter-ruud-geels-op-75-jarige-leeftijd-overleden |access-date=2023-11-18 |website=ESPN.nl |language=nl}}</ref>

==Career statistics==
===Club===
{| class=wikitable style=text-align:center
|+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competition<ref name="wf">{{cite web |title=Ruud Geels » Club matches |url=https://www.worldfootball.net/player_summary/ruud-geels/2/ |website=worldfootball.net |access-date=15 December 2022}}</ref><ref name="nft">{{NFT|19423}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.afc-ajax.info/nl/voetballer/Ruud-Geels | title=Ruud Geels bij Ajax | date=28 July 1948 }}</ref>{{citation needed|date=February 2025}}
|-
!rowspan=2|Club
!rowspan=2|Season
!colspan=3|League
!colspan=2|Cup
!colspan=2|Europe
!colspan=2|Other
!colspan=2|Total
|-
!Division!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals
|-
|[[SC Telstar|Telstar]]
|[[1965–66 Eredivisie|1965–66]]
|[[Eredivisie]]
|8||5||1||1||colspan=2|—||colspan=2|—||9||6
|-
|rowspan=5|[[Feyenoord|Feijenoord]]
|[[1966–67 Eredivisie|1966–67]]
|Eredivisie
|25||8||||||colspan=2|—||colspan=2|—||25||8
|-
|[[1967–68 Eredivisie|1967–68]]
|Eredivisie
|32||20||||||colspan=2|—||colspan=2|—||32||20
|-
|[[1968–69 Eredivisie|1968–69]]
|Eredivisie
|20||10||3||3||1{{efn|Appearances in [[Inter-Cities Fairs Cup]]}}||0||colspan=2|—||24||13
|-
|[[1969–70 Eredivisie|1969–70]]
|Eredivisie
|12||8||||||4{{efn|name=EC|Appearances in [[UEFA Champions League|European Cup]]}}||6||colspan=2|—||16||14
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!89||46||3||3||5||6||colspan=2|—||97||55
|-
|rowspan=3|[[Go Ahead Eagles]]
|[[1970–71 Eredivisie|1970–71]]
|Eredivisie
|34||17||1||2||colspan=2|—||colspan=2|—||35||19
|-
|[[1971–72 Eredivisie|1971–72]]
|Eredivisie
|28||18||1||1||colspan=2|—||colspan=2|—||29||19
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!62||35||||||colspan=2|—||colspan=2|—||62||35
|-
|rowspan=3|[[Club Brugge KV|Club Brugge]]
|[[1972–73 Belgian First Division|1972–73]]
|[[Belgian Pro League|Belgian First Division]]
|23||10||||||4{{efn|name=UC|Appearances in [[UEFA Europa League|UEFA Cup]]}}||2||colspan=2|—||27||12
|-
|[[1973–74 Belgian First Division|1973–74]]
|Belgian First Division
|30||18||||||4{{efn|name=EC}}||0||colspan=2|—||34||18
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!53||28||||||8||2||colspan=2|—||61||30
|-
|rowspan=5|[[AFC Ajax|Ajax]]
|[[1974–75 Eredivisie|1974–75]]
|Eredivisie
|32||30||2||3||5{{efn|name=UC}}||1||colspan=2|—||39||34
|-
|[[1975–76 Eredivisie|1975–76]]
|Eredivisie
|33||29||3||3||6{{efn|name=UC}}||11||colspan=2|—||42||43
|-
|[[1976–77 Eredivisie|1976–77]]
|Eredivisie
|34||34||1||0||2{{efn|name=UC}}||0||colspan=2|—||37||34
|-
|[[1977–78 Eredivisie|1977–78]]
|Eredivisie
|32||30||6||6||6{{efn|name=EC}}||3||colspan=2|—||45||39
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!131||123||12||12||19||15||colspan=2|—||163||147
|-
|[[R.S.C. Anderlecht|Anderlecht]]
|[[1978–79 Belgian First Division|1978–79]]
|[[Belgian Pro League|Belgian First Division]]
|28||25||||||2{{efn|Appearances in [[UEFA Cup Winners' Cup|European Cup Winners' Cup]]}}||0||2{{efn|Appearances in [[UEFA Super Cup]]}}||0||32||25
|-
|rowspan=3|[[Sparta Rotterdam]]
|[[1979–80 Eredivisie|1979–80]]
|Eredivisie
|18||13||||||colspan=2|—||colspan=2|—||18||13
|-
|[[1980–81 Eredivisie|1980–81]]
|Eredivisie
|30||22||||||colspan=2|—||colspan=2|—||30||22
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!48||35||||||colspan=2|—||colspan=2|—||48||35
|-
|rowspan=3|[[PSV Eindhoven|PSV]]
|[[1981–82 Eredivisie|1981–82]]
|Eredivisie
|28||15||1||1||4{{efn|name=UC}}||3||colspan=2|—||33||19
|-
|[[1982–83 Eredivisie|1982–83]]
|Eredivisie
|4||0||||||0{{efn|name=UC}}||0||colspan=2|—||4||0
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!32||15||||||4||3||colspan=2|—||36||18
|-
|[[NAC Breda|NAC]]
|1982–83
|Eredivisie
|22||6||||||colspan=2|—||colspan=2|—||22||6
|-
!colspan=3|Career total
!473||318||19||20||38||26||2||0||532||364
|}
{{notelist}}

===International===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ Appearances and goals by national team and year<ref name="wf"/><ref name="nft">{{NFT|19423}}</ref>
|-
!National team!!Year!!Apps!!Goals
|-
|rowspan="8"|[[Netherlands national football team|Netherlands]]
|1974||5||1
|-
|1975||3||1
|-
|1976||4||3
|-
|1977||3||2
|-
|1978||2||3
|-
|1979||1||0
|-
|1980||0||0
|-
|1981||2||1
|-
!colspan="2"|Total!!20!!11
|}

== Honours ==
'''Feyenoord<ref name="eurosport422">{{cite web|title=Feyenoord, een topclub zonder geld|date=6 August 2010|url=https://www.voetbalkrant.com/nieuws/2010-08-06/feyenoord-een-topclub-zonder-geld}}</ref>'''
* [[Eredivisie]]: [[1968–69 Eredivisie|1968–69]]
* [[KNVB Cup]]: 1968–69
* [[European Cup]]: [[1969–70 European Cup|1969–70]]

'''Club Brugge<ref name="eurosport322">{{cite web|title=Club Brugge {{!}} Palmares|date=8 July 2017|url=https://www.clubbrugge.be/nl/geschiedenis}}</ref>'''
* [[Belgian Pro League|Belgian First Division]]: [[1972–73 Belgian First Division|1972–73]]

'''Ajax<ref name="eurosport36">{{cite web|title=Ajax {{!}} Prijzenkast|url=https://www.ajax1.nl/prijzenkast-ajax/}}</ref>'''
* [[Eredivisie]]: [[1976–77 Eredivisie|1976–77]]

'''Anderlecht<ref name="eurosport32">{{cite web|title=RSC Anderlecht {{!}} Palmares|url=https://www.rsca.be/nl/club/palmares}}</ref>'''
* [[UEFA Super Cup]]: [[1978 European Super Cup|1978]]
*[[Belgian National Sports Merit Award|Belgian Sports Merit Award]]: 1978<ref name="eurosport3">{{cite web|title=UEFA Euro 1980|url=https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuro/history/seasons/1980/matches/}}</ref>

'''Netherlands'''
*[[FIFA World Cup]] runner-up: [[1974 FIFA World Cup|1974]]
*[[UEFA European Championship]] third place: [[UEFA Euro 1976|1976]]

'''Individual'''
* [[Eredivisie#Top scorers|Eredivisie Top Scorer]]: [[1974–75 Eredivisie|1974–75]], [[1975–76 Eredivisie|1975–76]], [[1976–77 Eredivisie|1976–77]], [[1977–78 Eredivisie|1977–78]], [[1980–81 Eredivisie|1980–81]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=EredivisieStats – Alle uitslagen, standen en clubgegevens van de Nederlandse Eredivisie Voetbal|url=http://www.eredivisiestats.nl/topscorers.php|access-date=8 November 2020|website=eredivisiestats.nl}}</ref>
* [[List of UEFA Cup and Europa League top scorers#Winners by seasons|UEFA Cup Top Scorer]]: 1975–76<ref>{{Cite web|title=Fairs/UEFA Cup Topscorers|url=https://www.rsssf.org/ec/ec3tops.html|access-date=8 November 2020|website=[[RSSSF]]}}</ref>
* [[World Soccer (magazine)|World XI]]: 1976

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
* [http://www.beijen.net/frank/cvs/geels-r.htm Profile] {{in lang|nl}}
* {{wvo|960}}

{{1976 World Soccer World XI}}
{{UEFA Europa League top scorers}}
{{Eredivisie top scorers}}
{{Navboxes
|bg= #F1771D
|fg= white
|title= Netherlands squads
|list1=
{{Netherlands squad 1974 FIFA World Cup}}
{{Netherlands squad UEFA Euro 1976}}
}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Geels, Ruud}}
[[Category:1948 births]]
[[Category:2023 deaths]]
[[Category:Dutch men's footballers]]
[[Category:Footballers from Haarlem]]
[[Category:Men's association football forwards]]
[[Category:Men's association football midfielders]]
[[Category:1974 FIFA World Cup players]]
[[Category:UEFA Euro 1976 players]]
[[Category:Eredivisie players]]
[[Category:Belgian Pro League players]]
[[Category:AFC Ajax players]]
[[Category:Feyenoord players]]
[[Category:PSV Eindhoven players]]
[[Category:Go Ahead Eagles players]]
[[Category:Sparta Rotterdam players]]
[[Category:Club Brugge KV players]]
[[Category:NAC Breda players]]
[[Category:SC Telstar players]]
[[Category:R.S.C. Anderlecht players]]
[[Category:Netherlands men's international footballers]]
[[Category:Dutch expatriate men's footballers]]
[[Category:Dutch expatriate sportspeople in Belgium]]
[[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium]]
[[Category:Deaths from Alzheimer's disease]]
[[Category:20th-century Dutch sportsmen]]