Kjell Knops

Kjell Knops
Personal information
Full name Kjell Maria-Goretti Mathieu Knops[1]
Date of birth (1987-07-21) 21 July 1987
Place of birth Wijlre, Netherlands
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[2]
Playing position Centre back
Club information
Current team
 Port Vale
Number 5
Youth career
1994–2010 Roda JC Kerkrade
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2008–2010 Roda JC Kerkrade 1 (0)
2010–2011 EVV 26 (2)
2011–2016 MVV 152 (2)
2016– Port Vale 17 (0)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 00:00, 27 November 2016 (UTC).


Kjell Maria-Goretti Mathieu Knops (born 21 July 1987) is a Dutch footballer who plays as a centre-back for English League One club Port Vale. He began his professional career with Roda JC Kerkrade in 2008, before dropping into amateur football with EVV for the 2010–11 season. He then moved up to the Eerste Divisie for a five-year spell at MVV, who he also captained. He left the Netherlands and travelled to England to join Port Vale in June 2016.

Playing career

Early career

Knops spent his youth with Roda JC Kerkrade. He made his first team debut in professional football in the Eredivisie (first tier) as a late substitute for Marcel de Jong in a 3–0 win over NEC at the Parkstad Limburg Stadion on 15 November 2008.[3] This would prove his only appearance for the club, and he was one of 11 players released by general manager Martin van Geel in April 2010.[4] He played on trial at RKC Waalwijk in May 2010.[5] He then spent the 2010–11 season in the Topklasse (third tier) with amateur side EVV, and made 28 league and cup appearances as the club posted a ninth place finish in the Sunday league. He scored two goals for the club, in victories over AFC and Dijkse Boys.[6][7]

MVV Maastricht

Knops returned to professional football when he signed with René Trost's MVV in the Eerste Divisie (second tier) for the 2011–12 campaign. He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–2 win over Telstar at the Rabobank IJmond Stadion on 21 October.[8] Four days later he received the first red card of his career after he committed a professional foul in a 1–0 defeat to Achilles '29 in the KNVB Cup.[9] He was sent off for the second and final time of his MVV career on 20 January, afetr receiving two yellow cards in a 2–2 draw with Helmond Sport at the Stadion De Braak.[10] He featured in a total of 36 games, including both legs of the play-off round one defeat to Cambuur, after the club qualified for the play-offs with an eighth place finish. He again played 36 matches in the 2012–13 season as MVV finished in fifth place to go straight into the second round of the play-offs, where they were beaten 4–1 by FC Volendam; he later said this was the greatest achievement of his career.[11] He scored his second and final goal for the club on 1 March 2013, in a 2–1 defeat to FC Emmen at De Geusselt.[12] He signed a new two-year contract in June 2013.[13] MVV finished in 11th place in the 2013–14 campaign, with Knops featuring only 26 times as he spent two months out with a knee injury.[14] He made 29 appearances in the 2014–15 campaign, as MVV again finished in 11th spot, and was appointed as club captain.[15] He played 40 games in the 2015–16 season as MVV finished in tenth place, before dropping out of the play-offs at the first round following defeat to FC Volendam. His contract with the club ended on 31 March 2016.[16]

Port Vale

In June 2016, he signed a two-year contract with English League One club Port Vale.[17] He was manager Bruno Ribeiro's first signing for the club, and Knops said that he wanted to come to Vale Park because of Ribeiro's attractive style of football.[18] He began the 2016–17 season playing at left-back after injuries to Kiko and Adam Yates.[19] He adapted well to the role and forged an effective partnership with left-winger Jerome Thomas, and remained the "Valiants" first choice left-back despite the signing of Sam Hart and Kiko's recovery from injury.[20]

Personal life

Knops enjoys playing tennis in his spare time.[11] He speaks Dutch, German, and English.[21] He worked as a salesman from August 2010 to June 2011, and as an account manager at the Dutch Calendar Factory from March 2012 to July 2013; he has attended Zuyd University of Applied Sciences.[21]

Statistics

Club Season Division League KNVB Cup
FA Cup		 EFL Cup Other Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Roda JC Kerkrade 2008–09[2]Eredivisie1000000010
2009–10[2]Eredivisie0000000000
Total 1000000010
EVV 2010–11[2]Topklasse262200000282
MVV 2011–12[2]Eerste Divisie32120002[lower-alpha 1]0361
2012–13[2]Eerste Divisie33110002[lower-alpha 1]0361
2013–14[2]Eerste Divisie250100000260
2014–15[2]Eerste Divisie270200000290
2015–16[2]Eerste Divisie35010004[lower-alpha 1]0400
Total 15229000801692
Port Vale 2016–17[22]League One170101000190
Career total 196410010802154
  1. 1 2 3 Appearance in the play-offs.

References

  1. ↑ "List of players under written contract registered between 01/07/2016 and 31/07/2016" (PDF). The Football Association. p. 33. Retrieved 11 November 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "K. Knops". vi.nl. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  3. ↑ "Roda JC Kerkrade 3 - 0 NEC". Soccerway. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  4. ↑ "Roda JC laat komende zomer volledig elftal vertrekken". Voetbal International (in Dutch). 15 April 2010. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  5. ↑ "Knops plays test event for RKC Waalwijk". FC Update. 15 May 2010. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  6. ↑ "AFC VS. EVV 1 - 3". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  7. ↑ "DIJKSE BOYS VS. EVV 1 - 4". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  8. ↑ de Jong, Maarten (28 October 2011). ""Take a look out," said the trainer. "I did quite nice"". Football Central (in Dutch). Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  9. ↑ de Jong, Maarten (28 October 2011). "EXCLUSIVE - Interview with Kjell Knops". Football Central (in Dutch). Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  10. ↑ "HELMOND SPORT VS. MVV 2 - 2". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  11. 1 2 "Profile". mvv.nl. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  12. ↑ "MVV VS. EMMEN 1 - 2". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  13. ↑ "MVV defender know longer bind". Soccer News (in Dutch). 22 June 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  14. ↑ "MVV almost two months without Knops". FC Update (in Dutch). 13 October 2013. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  15. ↑ "MVV hires Polizzi, contract extension Knops and Moustafa". FC Update. 3 June 2015. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  16. ↑ "Contracts MVV players Knops and Labylle terminated". Limburg (in Dutch). 31 March 2016. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  17. ↑ "Kjell Knops: Port Vale boss Bruno Ribeiro signs Dutch defender from MVV Maastricht". BBC Sport. 28 June 2016. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  18. ↑ Baggaley, Mike (28 June 2016). "Kjell Knops attracted by Valiants' playing style". The Sentinel. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  19. ↑ "Port Vale: Kiko and Michael Brown getting close to fitness". The Sentinel. 19 August 2016. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  20. ↑ Baggaley, Mike (23 September 2016). "Bristol Rovers v Port Vale: Kjell Knops loving new challenge". The Sentinel. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  21. 1 2 "Profile". LinkedIn. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  22. ↑ "Games played by Kjell Knops in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
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