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Fullname: Edson Braafheid
aka: Heid
Born: 8 April 1983
Birthplace: Paramaribo, Suriname
Signed: 1 Feb 2010 (loan)
Left: 31 May 2010 (although World Cup followed so strictly was on our books till end of it)
Position: Left-back, Defender
Debut: Dunfermline 2-4 Celtic, Scottish Cup, 7 Feb 2010
Internationals: Netherlands
International Caps: {To be completed at end of career}
International Goals: {To be completed at end of career}
Squad number: 21

Biog

Edson Braafheid arrived at Celtic Park on a loan deal from Bayern Munich on February 1st 2010.

One of three players to join the Bhoys on loan during a hectic transfer deadline day the Dutchman was initially seen as a very welcome addition to a club still searching for a solution to the problematic left-back position.

He grew up and began playing youth football in his home town of Amsterdam. He was spotted by FC Utrecht and signed to the youth side graduating to the senior side in 2003. At the end of his contract there he joined FC Twente on a free and under then manager Fred Rutten he began to make the left back spot his own.

In 2006 he went to the U21 World Cup in Portugal with the Dutch side.The strength of his performances and his all round game in the Eredivisie started to mark out the young Edson as a star of the future.

When Bayern Munich fired Jurgen Klimsmann and appointed Louis van Gaal, Braafheid was pinpointed by Van Gaal and he made a EUR 2.090 million transfer from Holland to the Bavarian giants. However Van Gaal's start was poor and Braafheid suffered as one of his Dutch imports - the thinking being that he was too lightweight for the position.

Having started only five games in 2009/10 Bundesliga season he was allowed to leave and the clued up money had him returning to the Eredivisie. Both Ajax, and PSV had shown interest, and with the guy hailing from Amsterdam, it looked odds on he'd be strutting his stuff in De Arena. However with a wage burden now spiralling out of control at Ajax, maybe he would be forced to head on down to Eindhoven, and rejoin his old tutor, Fred Rutten, now firmly ensconced in the PSV hot seat.

The former PSV man would make his debut for the Hoops on Sunday February 7th in a 4-2 Scottish Cup victory at Dunfermline and he made a fair first impression with a key assist role in two of Celtic's goals.

Indeed the new Bhoy - facing plenty of competition - would take the Kerrydalestreet.co.uk Man of the Match award. Perhaps the only downside to an otherwise exceptional debut was the fact that the player's name was misspelt on the back of his shirt!

However, the Dutch fullback would not continue this impressive initial form. While Braafheid certainly showed plenty of promise going forward questions very quickly began to be asked of his defensive attributes which, to most observers, seemed far from impressive. In total, his good runs forward didn't always work out but in fairness Celtic as a whole were poor (until manager Tony Mowbray's exit). He created one cracking goal from a long cross, but that's it.

A 4-4 draw at Aberdeen was a bitter blow to the Bhoys already meagre title hopes. The Hoops had led 4-2 with just 17 minutes remaining but Braafheid gifted the home side a penalty and a lifeline with a needless handball. In the physical and frequently crude environment of the SPL Braafhied was beginning to look all too fragile and was increasingly maligned.

After the 4-0 thrashing at St.Mirren Celtic manager Tony Mowbray was axed and interim manager Neil Lennon's immediate rejig of the faltering Bhoys saw him relegate the on-loan Dutchman to the bench.

He found himself behind the much maligned Lee Naylor in the pecking order for the left-back slot, Edison was then dropped from the squad for the fateful Scottish Cup semi-final tie against Ross County. The player - who had come to Glasgow hoping to secure a place in the Dutch World Cup squad - reacted to this decision by storming out of Hampden (and getting fined for the reaction).

From that moment his very brief Celtic career was over in everything but name.

He was given a final chance in the last game of the season. As could only happen to him, he scored from a good free-kick to get himself some kudos only to see it chopped off as it was actually an indirect free-kick! A schoolboy error which again marks against the guy.

The loan move had been a huge let down for both parties. Braafheid came to Parkhead with a fine CV behind. It was therefore some surprise to see him come. Sadly, it was not to be a pleasant stay for the player or the club management.

To add insult to injury, his prior club (Bayern Munich) were now in the European Cup final and going for an historic first treble in German football (European Cup, domestic cup and league) whilst he was now stuck in the reserves at Celtic. Bayern ultimately grabbed a domestic double and lost narrowly in the European Cup final. He came knowing that he'd have to hit the ground running, but he wasted his chance with us, his international side and then with his old club when he returned.

For a player to have supposedly been playing for a chance to play for his country in an upcoming World Cup (2010), his ability and effort were poor. He was finally selected for his national squad (the Netherlands) to the surprise of many, and he managed to get subbed on at the end of the first half of extra-time in the World Cup final itself! It was his only appearance in the finals and the Netherlands lost 1-0 to Spain, but he managed to grab himself a game in the biggest match in the international national team sphere and get a silver medal. Congratulations to him. There wasn't really enough time for him to make his mark in the match and it was heading towards penalties before a last gasp winner for Spain. Should help to make up for all the disappointments on a personal level he'd suffered over the past year or so at club level. In part he has become the first player whilst on Celtic's books to play in a World Cup final!

Regardless of the boost from the World Cup, for the Celtic support that was not going to paper over what he had lacked to achieve at Celtic. He was possibly the poorest transfer move by Tony Mowbray but luckily it was just a short loan and nothing more.

Playing Career

Club	From	To	Fee	League		Scottish Cup		League cup		Other
Celtic	01/02/2010	31/05/2010	Loan	9 (1)	0	2 (0)	0	0 (0)	0	0 (0)	0
B Munich	01/07/2009		Signed	2 (1)	0	0 (0)	0	0 (0)	0	2 (1)	0
FC Twente	01/01/2008	31/05/2009		0 (0)	0	0 (0)	0	0 (0)	0	3 (0)	0
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals

Honours with Celtic

none

KDS Honours
MOTM Winners 2009-10
07-Feb-10	Dunfermline 2-4 Celtic	Scottish Cup 5th Rd

Pictures

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Celtic sign dutch defender Edson Braafheid

(1 Feb 2010, Official site)
Newsroom Staff

DUTCH international defender Edson Braafheid has joined Celtic on loan until the end of this season.

The club are delighted to have signed the player from Bayern Munich and he becomes the sixth arrival at Celtic Park during the January transfer window.

Edson Braafheid has won five caps for Holland and the 26-year-old is aiming to secure his place in the Dutch squad for the 2010 World Cup.

He began his career at Utrecht before joining FC Twente in 2007. He moved to Bundesliga side Bayern Munich last summer.

Exclusive by Thomas Jordan

0 comments
Published on 12 Apr 2010

Neil Lennon will hit Edson Braafheid with a fine and banish him to the reserves this week for going AWOL at Hampden Park as Celtic crashed out of the Active Nation Scottish Cup.

The on-loan Dutchman stormed out of the National Stadium before his team-mates crashed 2-0 to Ross County after the interim Parkhead manager omitted him from his 16 for the semi-final showdown.

SportTimes understands Lennon is furious with the Bayern Munich full-back and will hammer him with a fine for his unprofessional attitude.

He will also be banished from first-team business this week at Lennoxtown.

And it appears Lennon – who is livid at the shocking performance his side produced against their First Division opponents – is also about to get tough with two of the most high-profile players at the club.

Strikers Georgios Samaras and Marc-Antoine Fortune are expected to find themselves completely bombed out for tomorrow night’s SPL clash with Motherwell at Parkhead as the caretaker boss attempts to steer Celtic to a second-place finish in the league.

His decision to punish Braafheid for leaving the stadium after his decision to put Mark Wilson on the bench should proves he means business.

A Celtic insider said: “Edson wasn’t happy with the decision but Mark Wilson can cover more positions and that was the reason why he was included as one of the substitutes ahead of him.

“But he wasn’t the only player not included. He was, however, the only player not to watch the game as he left before kick-off which is completely unprofessional and shows a lack of respect to the rest of your team-mates and the management.”