Premier League ace John Heitinga wasn’t known for his shooting on the pitch – but he took a punt from 40-yards when requesting the number of Bolo Zenden’s stunning sister.
Heitinga, who turned 41 earlier this month, is currently part of the coaching set-up at Liverpool, but he turned out for the blue-half of the city during his playing days. And as Heitinga earned plaudits for Everton, his international team-mate turned out for the Reds.
The pair also shared a dressing room during Euro 2004, and Zenden has previously spoken about the ballsy request from the tournament in Portugal. He told Ladbrokes Fanzone: “I’m not sure whether many people in the UK know the link between John and myself… obviously everyone in Holland knows.
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“It’s funny how our careers went, when you look at our relationship today; I played for Liverpool, he went to Everton, he started off at Ajax, I started off at PSV.
“We did play together in the Euros in 2004, and that’s when my sister and him first met up, and they’ve been together ever since.”
(Image: Getty Images)
Zenden revealed the warning he had for his compatriot after being asked for his blonde beauty Charlotte’s number, as the former winger said: “How did it come about?
“I don’t remember whether he asked for my sister’s number or my sister asked for his number – I guess the only thing I really said to him was ‘you’d better be good to my sister!'”
The pair have since become brothers-in-law when the former centre-back Heitinga married Charlotte in 2010 with the couple sharing three children.
(Image: VI-Images via Getty Images)
(Image: VI-Images via Getty Images)
Despite stints with Chelsea, Liverpool, Middlesbrough, and Sunderland, Zenden admitted he keeps an eye on West Ham’s results, where Heitinga was assistant manager role last season, joking he hadn’t spoken to him since the Hammers’ whopping 6-0 defeat at home to Arsenal.
“I haven’t spoken with John since the Arsenal defeat, but I’m sure you can imagine what that dressing room would have been like at half-time, 4-0 down at home, having conceded three goals just before the break,” he remarked.
(Image: Getty Images)
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“There’s really not a lot you can do at that point in the game to turn things around, especially against a team like Arsenal.”
Heitinga is now an assistant coach for Arne Slot at Liverpool, joining the Reds in the summer when his compatriot replaced Jurgen Klopp as manager at Anfield, while Charlotte divides her time between Merseyside and Amsterdam.