Former Norwich striker Ricky van Wolfswinkel has announced that he will retire at the end of the season. The 37-year-old Dutch striker is currently playing for FC Twente, a side he joined in 2021 and has been a regular scorer for even in his twilight years. The former Norwich striker, despite his advancing years, has scored 10 goals in 31 games, making it five straight seasons for FC Twente with double figures.
Van Wolfswinkel began his career with Vitesse, making his senior debut during the 2007/2008 season. After eight goals in 32 games he joined FC Utrecht in the summer of 2009. Van Wolfsinkel really came alive during his time with Utrecht, scoring 35 goals in 79 games. His 23 goals in 44 games during the 2010/2011 season attracted plenty of interest from abroad.
One side who made the move for him were Portuguese giants Sporting CP. The Lisbon based side brought van Wolfsinkel to the club and he immediately returned the favour, scoring 23 goals in 44 games. After 19 goals in 40 games the following season, he was set for the Premier League.
Sadly, van Wolfswinkel was a flop for Norwich in the Premier League. The Dutch forward played 27 games for Norwich during the 2013/2014, scoring a solitary goal. The following season Norwich sent him out on loan to Saint Etienne, with the move paying off for the striker. Van Wolfswinkel scored nine goals for the French side, but his time in England was over by then. After just one appearance and one goal for Norwich in 2015, he was off again.
Sevilla based side Real Betis signed the striker on loan, but he struggled in Spain with just three goals in 19 games. By then, it looked like the striker would return to Dutch football for good. Vitesse resigned their once promising young forward and he rediscovered his form in Dutch football with 23 goals in 37 games.
While many expected the forward to remain in Dutch football, he was tempted to leave the Netherlands once more, this time joining Swiss giants Basel. Van Wolfswinkel spent four seasons with Basel, with the first two seeing him scored 29 goals. The final two were more of a struggle as he only managed eight. In the summer of 2021 FC Twente brought him back to Dutch football.
Despite his struggles with Norwich in English football, Van Wolfswinkel has to go down as one of the more lethal strikers in Dutch domestic football. At every club he played for in the Eredivisie, he scored goals.
