Stefan de Vrij was born in Ouderkerk aan den IJssel, on February 5, 1992.
He grew up playing football in the Feyenoord academy. He then made his debut for the "De Club van het volk" (The People's Team) in 2009. He stayed five seasons with 4th, 10th, 2nd, 3rd and 2nd places. He made 154 appearances with 7 goals in Rotterdam. His coaches were first former Pisa player Mario Been and Ronald Koeman.
In 2014 he joined Lazio. The fans had just admired his performances in the Brazil 2014 World Cup. His first manager in Rome was Stefano Pioli and Lazio finished 3rd (then lost CL preliminary to Bayer Leverkusen). The Biancocelesti also reached the Coppa Italia final but lost to Juventus 1-2 after extra-time.
In 2015-16 Pioli was replaced by Simone Inzaghi after 31 games but de Vrij was out injured most of the season and only played 2 league games, 2 in the CL preliminary and the Italian Supercoppa (lost to Juventus 0-2). Lazio finished 8th.
In 2016-17 he was fit again. The manager was Inzaghi after Marcelo Bielsa had resigned even before arriving. De Vrij played 27 league games with 2 goals (Chievo, Sampdoria) and 4 games in Coppa Italia. Lazio reached the final of the domestic cup but lost to Juventus 0-2. In the league Lazio finished 5th and qualified for the Europa League. Lazio however triumphed in the Italian Supercoppa defeating Juventus 3-2 in Rome.
The 2017-18 season would be his last and it ended in controversy. He had already signed for Inter when in the last game of the season Lazio played the Nerazzurri for a place in the Champions League. There was a lot of talk prior to the match whether de Vrij should even play considering his conflicting interests at stake. As it was he played badly, giving away a penalty to Inter and handing the "Beneamata" and himself a place in the following year's Champions League. His spell at Lazio therefore ended in polemic, a pity because he had been a good, solid defender for the Biancocelesti. In the end he played 118 games for Lazio with 10 goals.
In 2018 he joined Inter, managed by Luciano Spalletti. The Nerazzurri finished 4th and de Vrij played 28 league games with 2 goals (Torino, Milan), 5 in the Champions League and 3 in the Europa League. In Milan he teamed up with former Lazio, Keita Balde and Antonio Candreva.
The following year Antonio Conte was manager of Inter. The Nerazzurri finished 2nd and were runners up in the Europa League, losing to serial winners Seville 2-3. De Vrij played 34 league games with 4 goals (Torino, Milan, Parma, Roma), 2 games in Coppa Italia and 6 in Europe (CL 6, EL 4).
In 2020-21 Inter won the Scudetto under Antonio Conte. De Vrij played 32 league games with 1 goal (Sampdoria), 4 in Coppa Italia and 6 in the Champions League.
In 2021-22 his former Lazio manager Simone Inzaghi arrived as the new manager. The Nerazzurri finished 2nd but won the Coppa Italia (Juventus 4-2 after extra-time) and the Italian Supercoppa (Juventus 2-1 after extra-time). De Vrij played 30 league games, 4 in Coppa Italia, 6 in CL with 1 goal (Sheriff Tiraspol) and the Italian Supercoppa.
In 2022-23 Inter finished 3rd but reached the final of the Champions League, losing to Manchester City 0-1. Inter won the Coppa Italia (Fiorentina 2-1) and the Italian Supercoppa (Milan 3-0). De Vrij played 27 league games with 1 goal (Sampdoria ), 3 in Coppa Italia, 7 in the Champions League plus the Italian Supercoppa.
In 2023-24 Inter finally won the scudetto. De Vrij played 25 games in Serie A, with one goal, twice in the Super Coppa, which Inter won, and six in Champions League.
So far he has won 73 caps for Holland with 4 goals (Spain, Czech Republic Spain again and Turkey). He has played in a World Cup in 2014 and the European Championships in 2021 (2020 postponed for Covid 19) and 2024.
De Vrij is a central defender and can play in a 3 or 4 -man back line system. He is 1.89 and 80 kilos. He is a defensive leader and commands well. He can play the ball out from the back and has good positioning and precise short and long passes. He is above all a solid tackler, often anticipating his opponents. He is also dangerous at the other end with his heading abilities and has scored 29 career goals.
At Lazio he had a good four seasons, although one he practically missed due to a serious knee injury. He is one of the better defenders in Lazio's history. The fact that he was immediately and successfully replaced by Francesco Acerbi made his departure less difficult.
Unfortunately his spell at Lazio ended in controversy as he refused to sign a new contract but instead signed a pre-contract with Inter for the following season. Fate then had it that the last decisive match of the season for a Champions League slot was Lazio vs Inter. His soon to be past against his future, not an easy psychological situation to be in. As it was he gave away a penalty with a clumsy tackle and Inter went on to win in the dying minutes. A pity, he left the field in tears but the fact remains to the fans that he would be playing Champions League football and Lazio would not. They have never forgotten and it has overshadowed four years of solid, professional performances by the Dutchman.
Lazio Career
Season | Total games (goals) | Serie A | Coppa Italia | Champions League | Europa League | Super Coppa |
2014-15 | 35 (1) | 30 | 5 (1) | - | - | - |
2015-16 | 5 | 2 | - | 2 | - | 1 |
2016-17 | 31 (2) | 27 (2) | 4 | - | - | - |
2018-19 | 47 (7) | 36 (6) | 3 | - | 7 (1) | 1 |
Total | 118 (10) | 95 (8) | 12 (1) | 2 | 7 (1) | 2 |
Sources
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