Glenn Loovens was born in Doetinchem, Netherlands, on 22 October 1983 (age 42), and came through as a Dutch central defender whose early senior education included loan football before he settled into regular first-team life.
Cardiff City was the club that brought him properly into the British game, and Celtic signed him from there in August 2008 for around £2.5m. He was a solid, orthodox centre-half rather than a great mystery: strong enough in the air, tidy enough on the ball, and generally suited to the demands placed on him.
His first league season at Celtic was also his most productive, with three goals in 16 appearances in 2008-09. He remained part of the first-team squad through to 2012, a useful defender across a period that was not short of churn.
Loovens left Celtic in July 2012 for Real Zaragoza. After Spain, he had a spell with Sunderland before finding a more settled later stage at Sheffield Wednesday, where he became an established presence in defence.
His career took him from the Netherlands to Cardiff, Celtic, Spain, Sunderland and Sheffield Wednesday. At Celtic, he was an important first-team player without ever needing to be dressed up as more than that.
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