Jan Jacobus Wouters (; born 17 July 1960) is a Dutch professional football coach and former player. He played as a defensive midfielder and was Dutch Footballer of the Year in 1990.
Playing career Wouters played for several clubs including Utrecht, Ajax, Bayern Munich and PSV. He was also a Netherlands international team member (70 caps, four goals) and was hugely influential in 1988 when the Netherlands won the European Football Championship.
Wouters participated in four tournaments as player of the Dutch national team: UEFA Euro 1988, 1990 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 1992, and 1994 FIFA World Cup. He played his final match in the Dutch team during the quarter finals of the 1994 World Cup against later winners Brazil on 9 July 1994.
Coaching career Wouters started his career as head coach at Ajax after the sacking of coach Morten Olsen in December 1998. Wouters was sacked by Ajax in March 2000.
He was a coach of Scottish Premier League club Rangers under Dick Advocaat and then Alex McLeish, starting in July 2001. He left Rangers at the end of the 2005–06 season, along with McLeish and Andy Watson.
Wouters is infamous to England supporters after elbowing Paul Gascoigne and fracturing his cheekbone during a World Cup qualifier in 1993 at Wembley Stadium. Gascoigne was forced to wear a Phantom of the Opera style facemask to protect his fractured cheekbone until his injury healed. The following day, the Daily Mirror labelled Wouters a "Dutch thug". The match was drawn 2–2 and damaged England's hopes of qualifying for the 1994 World Cup finals in the United States, despite England leading the match 2–0.
Career statistics Club + Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational CupOtherContinentalTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsUtrecht1980–81Eredivisie19120——2111981–8231482—204361982–8327610—102961983–8431421——3351984–8525161——3121985–8633510—20365Total16621204—5019325Ajax1986–87Eredivisie32470—914851987–882841020703641988–8922140—102701989–9028741—213471990–9130521—— 3261991–92112——40141Total151231822023219423Bayern Munich1991–92Bundesliga171———1711992–9333420——3541993–9416141—40242Total68661—40767PSV1993–94Eredivisie10110——1111994–9522110—202511995–9620340—30273Total52560—50635Career total437555072037252460
International + Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsNetherlands198210198300198400198500198670198730198810119895219901101991601992131199370199470Total704
Scores and results list the Netherlands' goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Wouters goal.
+ List of international goals scored by Jan WoutersNo.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition1 24 May 1988 De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands 1–0 1–2 Friendly2 4 January 1989 Ramat Gan Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel 1–0 2–0 Friendly3 6 September 1989 Olympisch Stadion, Amsterdam, Netherlands 2–0 2–2 Friendly4 25 March 1992 De Meer Stadion, Amsterdam, Netherlands 2–0 2–0 Friendly
Honours Utrecht KNVB Cup: 1984–85
Ajax Eredivisie: 1989–90 KNVB Cup: 1986–87 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1986–87
Bayern Munich Bundesliga: 1993–94
PSV KNVB Cup: 1995–96
Netherlands UEFA European Championship: 1988
Individual Dutch Footballer of the Year: 1989–90 UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament: 1988 kicker Bundesliga Team of the Season: 1992–93
In popular culture Wouters was repeatedly referenced in a Saturday Night Live sketch on 4 February 2023 featuring James Austin Johnson as a British rapper named Milly Pounds.
References
External links
profile Jan Wouters