Andwélé Slory

Football player infobox
playername = Andwélé Slory


fullname = Andwélé Slory
nickname = Andy
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1982|9|27
cityofbirth = flagicon|Suriname Paramaribo
countryofbirth = Suriname
height = height|meters=1.70
currentclub = Feyenoord
clubnumber = 22
position = Winger
youthyears =
youthclubs =
years = 2001-2005 2005-2007 2007-
clubs = Stormvogels Telstar Excelsior Feyenoord
caps(goals) = 77 (21) 65 (26) 17 (2)
nationalyears = 2007-
nationalteam = Netherlands
nationalcaps(goals) = 02 0(0)
pcupdate = 22:22, 6 June 2007 (CET)
ntupdate = 22:22, 6 June 2007 (CET)

Andwélé Slory (born September 27, 1982 in Paramaribo, Suriname) is a Dutch footballer who currently plays for the Dutch side Feyenoord, as a striker and winger.

Club career

Early career

Slory made his professional debut in the Dutch First Division in 2001 for Stormvogels Telstar, a relatively small club. Slory, who already was part of the main squad a year earlier, made 9 appearances for Telstar, not scoring any goals. His next season he made two appearances. The 2003/2004 season was his breakthrough, Slory appeared 35 times for Telstar, in which he scored 12 goals. In his final season for the club, he would score 9 times in 31 appearances.

In 2005/2006, Slory was transferred to Excelsior Rotterdam. Upon his signing, Feyenoord put an option on his contract. Slory would play a huge part in the promotion of Excelsior to the Eredivisie, scoring 14 goals in 36 appearances.

Debut in the Eredivisie

In the Eredivisie, life was predicted to be tough for Excelsior. Being seen as the club with the lowest budget and having the least quality in the league, Excelsior was an almost certain relegation candidate. However, they started great, with Slory as their main man, displaying outstanding dribbling abilities, setting up and scoring goals. His excellent play was noticed by various clubs like Feyenoord, Ajax and Manchester City.

On December 21, 2006, Feyenoord signed Slory for two seasons, but he would only join the side after the end of the season. He continued to score for Excelsior in important games, including in a 2-2 away fixture against Ajax. He also scored in the 6-1 home trashing against Heracles Almelo and twice away against ADO Den Haag, both clubs who also fought against relegation. On the last matchday, Excelsior played against leaders AZ Alkmaar. Slory's excellent dribble caused AZ-goalie Boy Waterman to make a mistake, which resulted in his sending off and a penalty. Excelsior scored and went on to win 3-2, which caused AZ to lose the title to PSV Eindhoven. Excelsior finished 16th, which would mean they would have to compete in promotion/relegation playoffs. With wins against BV Veendam (two Slory goals in the second leg) and RBC Roosendaal (with Slory scoring the winning goal in the second leg), Excelsior remained in the top flight.

Career at Feyenoord

Slory received the #11 jersey at Feyenoord. Before he ever played a match for his new club, rivals Ajax Amsterdam showed interest in his acquisition, but the move was rejected. [ [http://www.voetbalzone.nl/doc.asp?uid=44595 "Feyenoord rejects Ajax bid for new kid Slory "] ] Showing much skill on the training grounds and in the friendlies (including a goal against Liverpool), Slory was in the starting eleven in the opening fixture away against FC Utrecht, but collided with opposing goalie Franck Grandel after 17 minutes, breaking a bone in his foot and sidelined for two months.

Upon his return to competition, on November 11, 2007, against arch-rivals Ajax, as a substitute, Slory missed two enormous chances to win the game for Feyenoord, as the match ended in a 2-2 draw. As a downside, a threatening letter was posted on his address. It read: 'Next time, score chances like that. Or else, it would be wise to move.' Slory reported to the police about the threat. On December 2, Slory scored his first goal for Feyenoord against Heracles, which ended in a 6-0 win. He also scored in a 1-1 draw away against SC Heerenveen, as he gradually established himself in the first XI.

International career

As a result of his excellent play at Excelsior, Slory was one of the very few Excelsior-players ever who was selected for the Netherlands national football team. [ [http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/25052007/1/slory-gets-first-call-holland.html "Slory gets first call for Holland] ] He made his international debut on June 2, 2007 against South Korea, and became man of the match.

References