Faas Wilkes
Servaas ("Faas") Wilkes (October 13, 1923, Rotterdam — August 15, 2006, Rotterdam) was a former Dutch football (soccer) striker, who earned a total number of 38 caps for the Netherlands national football team, in which he scored 35 goals (average 0,92). However, during a prolonged period of his career, between 1949 and 1956, he was considered not eligible for the Dutch National team as the then current rules did not allow for professional players.
Wilkes played with Xerxes Rotterdam, then arrived at Inter Milan in the summer of 1949. He played with Inter 95 matches scoring 47 goals. After the Inter period ended in the 1952 he played one season with Torino and in the age of 30 he moved to La Liga for Valencia, scoring with los Ches a total of 38 goals in 62 appearances between 1953-54 and 1955-56 making him the first foreign idol of the Valencian club. He also played for Levante and Hion. He died of a cardiac arrest, aged 82.
He is considered as one of the best football players the Netherlands ever had. Characteristic were his long rushes and adequate passes which resulted many times in beautiful goals. One could say that "dribbling" was his middle name. Wilkes was the third Dutch player (after and Gerrit Vreken) who played abroad.
The Dutch cartoon character was named in part after Faas Wilkes (Wilstra was also named after two other Dutch footballers, Kick Smit and Abe Lenstra).
Clubs
- 1940-1949: Xerxes
- 1949-1952: Internazionale
- 1952-1953: Torino FC
- 1953-1956: Valencia
- 1956-1958: VVV
- 1958-1959: Levante
- 1959-1962: Fortuna '54
- 1962-1964: Xerxes
External links
- In memorial for Faas Wilkes (Dutch)