John Gijsbert Alan Heitinga

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Johnny Heitinga came to Everton in another transfer deadline-day scramble that went right to the wire as the Dutchman took his time considering the proposed switch from sunny Spain to Merseyside at short notice.  Though a fee in the region of £6M was agreed with the Spanish club three days ahead of the closure of the transfer window, personal terms (reportedly the highest salary of any Everton player at the time) weren't agreed until a few hours before the deadline expired.

Fans could have been forgiven for thinking that the Blues had paid over the odds for a player who received a 0/10 rating for this final performance for Atletico Madrid just to get another versatile player into the squad.  And Heitinga's first few performances at right back and in defensive midfield, both positions he has filled before, seemed to confirm those fears.

He looked short on pace, clumsy and overly aggressive, perhaps bolstering the image seemingly projected by his shaven head.

It wasn't until a defensive injury crisis in the autumn of 2009 and Heitinga was moved to centre half that the former Ajax man suddenly put the doubts to rest, emerging as the international class defender of his billing.

A series of man-of-the-match displays lay at the heart of the Blues' winter revival and helped establish Heitinga as the rock in the Everton defence.  His no-nonsense, ruthlessly effective defensive style and leadership by example now have Evertonians wondering if the club has found its next captain and legend in the making — quite the turnaround from the shaky beginning to his Goodison career.

In 2010, Johnny Heitinga was involved in the World Cup in South Africa with Holland, and went all the way to the final, with solid diplays in every game.  But, after some fabulous stops in the World Cup Final, a yellow card for an odd incident referee Howard Webb did not see, set the scene for a second yellow when, 20 mins into extra time, he put a hand on Iniesta's shoulder and the Spanish would-be goalscorer went down like a sack of spuds. Johnny became only the fifth player to be expelled from a World Cup Final — but the second Everton player!

Heitinga returned from the World Cup from an extended break and it took a while for him to get back into the swing of life in the Premier League, mostly because David Moyes preferred the partnership of Jagielka and Distin in defence, a trend that would continue into the 2011-12 season.

Indeed, with Heitinga struggling to convince that he was an answer in central midfield and third in the central defensive pecking order, he found himself not only spending plenty of time on the bench but also the subject of the first stirrings of media speculation linking him with a move back to the Continent.

By Lyndon Lloyd and Michael Kenrick
Last updated November 2011