On This Day: Happy Birthday to Ronaldinho, Griezmann, Matthaus, Alba & Koeman!

Hi all, welcome to All Football's On This Day! Let's find out what happened today (March 21st) in football history. If you have more stories and news that happened on this day in history, feel free to post them in the comment area and share them with AFers!

On This Day in 1980 - Happy birthday, Ronaldinho!

On 21 March 1980, two-time FIFA World Player of the Year Ronaldo de Assis Moreira was born in Porto Alegre, Brazil. Better known as Ronaldinho Gaucho--or more simply, Ronaldinho (for "little Ronaldo")--he would go on to win league titles and the UEFA Champions League with Barcelona as well as a World Cup with Brazil.

Ronaldinho started his professional career with his hometown club, Grêmio, joining his older brother, Roberto, there in 1998. An attacking midfielder, Ronaldinho scored 21 league goals for Grêmio between 1998 and 2001 before moving to Paris-St. Germain in a transfer deal worth €5.1 million. He stayed with PSG for two relatively successful seasons, but his time there was marked by a rift with managerLuis Fernández, who criticized him of focusing more on his social life than his football.

During his time in Paris, Ronaldinho was part of the Brazil squad that won the 2002 World Cup - his first time on football's biggest stage. He provided the match-winner in Brazil's 2-1 win over England in the quarterfinals. He was sent off eight minutes later and missed the semifinal, but returned to start for Brazil in their 2-0 win over Germany in the Final.

In the summer of 2003, he transferred to Barcelona for €32,250,000. He would have his greatest success to date with the Catalan club, winning the 2004-05 and 2005-06 La Liga titles as well as the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final. He collected a number of individual accolades during that period, including the 2004 and 2005 FIFA World Player of the Year Awards.

He left Barcelona in July 2008 for AC Milan, then returned to Brazil in 2011 to play for Flamengo, Atlético Mineiro, and his current club, Querétaro.

On This Day in 1991 - Griezmann Keeps Fighting!

Atletico Madrid and the French national team star Griezmann was born 21 March 1991.

Griezmann began his senior career as a member of Spanish side Real Sociedad in 2009. He departed five seasons later to join Atletico Madrid for a then-club record €30 million. Although featuring mostly as a winger during his time with Sociedad, Griezmann adapted his game in Madrid to become a complete forward, and quickly became the focal point of the team. He would go on to break the club's scoring record for a debut season, and was named in the 2014–15 La Liga Team of the Season. He was also named La Liga Best Player in 2016, nominated for both the 2016 Best FIFA Men's Player and 2016 Ballon d'Or awards, finishing third on both occasions. Later in 2018, he was again nominated for 2018 Best FIFA Men's Player and 2018 Ballon d'Or, finishing sixth and third respectively. He also won the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League, scoring twice in the final and also won the 2018 UEFA Super Cup.

At UEFA Euro 2016, France finished runners-up as hosts, while Griezmann was the top goalscorer and was voted the Player of the Tournament. 

He later won the 2018 FIFA World Cup, a tournament in which he scored four goals, which earned him the Silver Boot as the second highest goalscorer of the tournament, won the Bronze Ball as the third best player, and was named man of the match in the final.

On This Day in 1989 - Happy Birthday to Jordi Alba

Barcelona and the Spain national team star Jordi Alba was born 21 March 1989. 

Alba started his career at Barcelona, but was released after being deemed too small. After joining Cornellà, he moved to Valencia. In 2012 he returned to Barcelona, with whom he went on to win 13 major honours, including four La Liga titles, four Copas del Rey and one Champions League.

After winning 23 caps and scoring one goal at youth level, Alba made his senior debut for Spain in 2011. He was an integral member of the team that won the European Championship in 2012, and was also part of the squads at the 2014 and 2018 World Cups and Euro 2016.

On This Day in 1961 - German Legend Matthaus was Born

German football manager and former player Matthaus was born 21 March 1961. 

After captaining West Germany to victory in the 1990 FIFA World Cup where he lifted the World Cup trophy, he was named European Footballer of the Year. In 1991, he was named the first ever FIFA World Player of the Year, and remains the only German to have received the award.

Matthaus held the record of having played in five FIFA World Cups (1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998), more than any other outfield player in men's football, until the 2018 World Cup, in which Mexico's Rafael Márquez equalled his record in a 1–0 victory over Germany, and holds the record for the most World Cup matches played by a single player (25 games). 

He was the captain of the West German team that won the 1990 World Cup in Italy and also was captain of the German squad in the 1994 World Cup in the United States. He also won UEFA Euro 1980, and played in the 1984, 1988, and 2000 UEFA European Football Championships. In 1999, aged 38, he was again voted German Footballer of the Year, having previously won the award in 1990.

Matthaus is the most capped German player of all time, retiring with a total of 150 appearances (83 for West Germany) in 20 years, and 23 goals. Matthaus is a member of the FIFA 100 list of the greatest living football players chosen by Pelé. Diego Maradona said of Matthäus, "he is the best rival I've ever had. I guess that's enough to define him", in his book Yo soy el Diego (I am the Diego).

A versatile and complete player, Matthaus is regarded as one of the greatest midfielders of all time, and was renowned for his perceptive passing, positional sense, well-timed tackling, as well as powerful shooting. During his career, he usually played as a box-to-box midfielder, although late in his career he played as a sweeper.

On This Day in 1963 - Truly a Big Day in Football! Koeman was Born, too

Dutch retired football legend and former manager Koeman was born. 

A composed player on the ball, Koeman was capable of being deployed both as a defender and as a midfielder, and he frequently played as a sweeper, due to his vision and his ability on the ball. Regarded as one of the best and most prolific attacking central defenders of all time, Koeman was renowned for his long-range passing, as well as his shooting accuracy and power from distance, especially on free kicks, and is the top scoring defender in world football; he was also an accurate penalty kick taker.

At international level, Koeman was one of the stars of the Netherlands national team, alongside Marco van Basten, Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard and Dennis Bergkamp. During his career with the Netherlands, Koeman won UEFA Euro 1988 and played at the 1990 and 1994 FIFA World Cups, captaining the team at the latter.

Born in Zaandam, Koeman began his career at FC Groningen before transferring to the Netherlands' most successful club Ajax, where he won the national Eredivise title in 1984–85. He then joined Ajax's rivals PSV, winning three consecutive Eredivisie titles and the European Cup in 1988. Ronald Koeman is one of five European players to ever win a Treble with their club and a cup with their national team in the same year. The other four players are his teammates Hans van Breukelen, Berry van Aerle, Gerald Vanenburg and Wim Kieft. In 1989, Koeman moved to Barcelona and became part of Johan Cruyff's "Dream Team", helping the club win La Liga four years in a row between 1991 and 1994, and the European Cup, where he scored the winning goal of the final against Sampdoria in 1992.

As a head coach, Koeman has won three Eredivisie titles: twice with Ajax (2001–02 and 2003–04) and once with PSV (2006–07). He is the only individual to have both played for and managed the "Big Three" of Dutch football: Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord. Abroad, he had spells in Portugal with Benfica and Spain with Valencia, coaching Los Che to victory in the 2007–08 Copa del Rey, and managed Premier League clubs Southampton and Everton in the 2010s.

On This Day in 2015 - Harry Kane's First Premier League's Hat-Trick

On 21st May 2015, Harry Kane crowned a fine week with a hat-trick to become the Premier League's top goalscorer at that time and earn Tottenham a dramatic 4-3 victory over Leicester at White Hart Lane.

The striker, picked for England for the first time just days before, tapped home from close range after just six minutes before doubling the lead seven minutes later with a scuffed effort into the far corner.

Having selected Kane for the upcoming Euroepan Qualifier against Lithuania and subsequent friendly with Italy, Roy Hodgson watched from the stands as the 21-year-old scored his first ever league hat-trick and took his tally to 29 from 43 appearances this term.

Magnificent performance.

On This Day in 1969 - Iranian Legend Ali Daei was Born

Iranian former footballer and current coach and businessman Ali Daei was born 21 March 1969. 

Daei is record holder for the world's all-time leading goalscorer in the history of men's international football.

He currently manages Persian Gulf Pro League club Saipa and is the owner and CEO of Daei Sport. He was a captain of the Iran national football team, having played as a striker for clubs such as Bayern Munich and Hertha BSC.

From June 2007 until 2013, Daei was a member of the FIFA Football Committee. In 2001, Daei was appointed as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.

On This Day in 1987 - Milan Gets A Ruud Awakening

On 21 March 1987, Dutch club PSV Eindhoven sold defender/midfielder Ruud Gullit to AC Milan for the then-record fee of £6 million. Gullit had already established himself as a world class player, helping PSV to the Eredivisie title in 1986 and 1987. He was named Dutch Footballer of the Year in both years. Gullit was unhappy at PSV, however, and requested the transfer to Milan.

At Milan, Gullit cemented his status as one of the world's greatest footballers. For his work with PSV and then Milan, he won the Ballon D'Or in 1987. Along with fellow Dutch internationals Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard, he helped Milan claim the Serie A title in 1987-88 after a club drought of nine years. Gullit's Milan went on to win two more Scudettos in 1992 and 1993. Internationally, Milan won back-to-back European Cup championships in 1989 and 1990, as well as the World Club Championship in 1990, though injuries limited Gullit's time on the pitch and forced him into a more peripheral role.

He left Milan in 1993 to play for Milan's Serie A rivals Sampdoria, where he rediscovered his pre-injury form. He led Sampdoria to the 1994 Italian Cup and a third-place finish in the league. Along the way, Gullit scored the game-winning goal in Sampdoria's 3-2 win over Milan. His performance that season was so impressive that Milan re-signed him in 1994, but he again struggled to find his form and returned to Sampdoria to finish the 1994-95 season. He finished his playing career at Chelsea, where he played from 1995-98. He went on to manage several clubs, including Chelsea, Newcastle United, Feyenoord Rotterdam, and the Los Angeles Galaxy.

On This Day in 1992 - Vinnie Jones's Cautionary Tale

On 21 March 1992, Chelsea midfielder Vinnie Jones set an English football record by getting a yellow card after only three seconds against Sheffield United.

Jones had previously established a reputation for aggressive play and a casual attitude toward the rules of the game, most notably during a three-year spell with Wimbledon's FA Cup-winning "Crazy Gang." But he left there in 1989 and spent a season with Leeds where his disciplinary record improved--he got only three yellows all season long.

In 1990, he moved to Sheffield United, then moved again a year later, joining Chelsea in 1991. While there, he continued to toe the line, but slipped up in a home match against his former club, Sheffield United, to earn the record-setting caution. To make matters worse, United went on to win, 1-2.

Jones returned to Wimbledon, playing there from 1992 to 1998, then retired in 1999 after a season with Queens Park Rangers. Afterward, he took up acting, usually in roles complemented by his playing reputation.