He always seems to pop up with important goals for you lot, works so hard and always seem to look like he's enjoying everything about playing football. I like his attitude a lot, never moans considering he's nearly always being played out of position and I think it's unfair that he doesn't get much recognition.

He does a lot of good work for charity too and I'm going to talk about it...

http://www.dirkkuytfoundation.nl/

"Kuyt's wife Gertrude has found favour in the Dutch media for her down-to-earth attitude. She continued to work as a nurse in an old people's home after marrying Kuyt until their daughter, Noelle, was born. Kuyt and his wife now carry out extensive charity work off the pitch. Most notably, he and his wife set up the Dirk Kuyt Foundation to help disadvantaged children in his homeland and the Third World. One of the ways the foundation raises money is by selling DK-branded clothes."

What do Liverpool fans think of him Torres Bounce?

As for my team Reading, we haven't had a player like that since Phil Parkinson retired - maybe Steve Sidwell, but for some reason fans never really warmed to him in the way we loved Parky.

We could desperately do with a Kuyt in our team - we've got quite a few Ku*ts.

I always had a soft spot for Gareth Southgate whoever he played for. Not the most technically gifted but put his all into it and showed genuine disappointment when his teams' performances were unacceptably below par. As a fan that's all you can hope for: a touch of humanity to put true class into perspective.

He can be frustrating and is renowned for scuffing good chances but what impresses me is that he never goes missing. He stepped up to take (and re-take) that penalty last night despite missing a couple of gilt-edged chances earlier.

He's just an honest player. The sort of player that makes you feel like the team and the fans are all on the same side after all.

I'm having a baby boy later this year. Might see what the missus thinks about the name 'Dirk'....

Yes, an air guitar celebration beats all that nancy boy faffing about they usually do after scoring!

he works that hard every single game make me tired just watching.

I can't comment on Kuyt's performance guys, I was too busy watching the 10-goal thriller on the other side! What a game.
I'm not a Man U fan per se but Darren Fletcher, what a trier. Seems to get a little bit better every season, through hard work.

on Stuart Pearce, Steve Stone and Steve Hodge - but they made it into the England team on similar values rather than raw talent I think.

John McGovern was similar though in a less noticable way. In the current Forest team Paul McKenna and Wes Morgan.

Though of all those named only Wes really waxes and wanes in terms of from like Kuyt - the rest were/are rock-solid consistent. And even Wes has been pretty much solid over the last four months...

who really does seem like a thoroughly decent bloke as well as a very good footballer.

Gary Mabbutt of Spurs always impressed me, especially with the work he did to encourage fellow diabetics to play. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer always struck me as a decent cove, too.

Of the current generation, obviously Gary Neville'e measured and intelligent responses to everything life throws at him are exemplary.

Carlos Tevez always seems to chase down absolutely everything and does more running in a game than Robinho does in a season.

Spurs don't have a Dirk Kuyt, which is why you won and we lost.

Rochdale's finest - Chris Dagnell - won't stop working til we win promotion.

I think I've got just what you're after:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/beatlesstory/3480670306/

Taken by me when I worked at the Beatles museum - he was a very nice chap!

...I give you Leon Osman. Everton through and through, oftentimes the target of the knobhead contingent, but always gives 100% and never, ever hides and will do whatever job the manager asks of him uncomplainingly. A lad I used to work with taught Leon when he was at school and said he was one of the nicest kids he ever taught.

overachieving footballers. I give you..... Carlton Palmer.

My view of Didier Drogba chnaged completely when I read recently that he had spent something like £3 million of his own money building a hospital in his home town.

Probably not a top class footballer, but seems a top class human being.

I think Lucas Leiva the bomb too.

No?

But sublime skill never looks like hard work.

The last time I posted about my beloved reds it was an angry post: one informed by the notion that without SG and FT we were carrion for any half-way decent premiership outfit to Friday night pizza.I'd underestimated Dirk and as Ian Faith once memorably said,'I think think this is a turning point for us.'

Who really did play like a man possessed on on Tuesday.

Richard Dunne - would put his body on the line for 90 minutes,score a few, and four or five times a season give away a penalty..can't believe we sold him to Villa as he's been great for them. Several times fans' player of the seaon.

The Goat. Legend. Not blessed with Torres-type anything, but never missing.

The Berbatov factor :probably the most sublime City player of the last thirty years but of course would go missing for large sections of games, Mr Kinkladze.

Thanks to this thread I've now got to revise my views of Drogba, Bellamy and Phil Neville. Maintaining biased and unreasonable dislikes of players is one of the few pleasures left in the game for a West Ham supporter. Luckily I think I'm still OK with the other Neville.

The Hammers haven't been overly gifted with hard workers. John Moncur and Tomas Repka certainly put the effort in, usually in reverse proportion to the common sense applied. Bobby Zamora was also a real grafter, but sadly not as much of a goal scorer. In the current squad Scott Parker and Mark Noble are about as close as we can get.

One of Lee's kids (a son I think) has Downs Syndrome. Read a lovely article about the Dad a few years ago when he was playing for Everton.
Crux of the story was that he had to rush back from an away match to attend an auction for the DS charity of which he was patron.
Apparently Moyes and a number of the players also travelled and proceeded to underbid each other for many items and consequently raised a considerably higher amount of money than would have been expected.

Geof Horsfield was immense - he had a lion heart and was a massive crowd favourite. Always put in 110 percent effort and would run through a brick wall for the club. Recently battled testicular cancer with the same gritty determination.
Also Martin Grainger - tough left back with the sweetest free kick.

The striker who hardly ever scored, but tried so bloody hard you had to love him.

Not sure how good he was when he went to Wimbledon, but he cheered up many a Saturday afternoon at the Valley.

The hard man to complement Hoddle's artistry. Obviously a hero in a Spurs shirt, obviously the opposite in a Chelsea one - but the sort of hatchet man that most teams seem to have had in those days.

The ultimate hero is surely Jamie Carragher. True grit and total hard work. Never gets the admiration from the press he deserves but epitomises everything a footballer should be.

The great Kenny Hibbitt, Wolves in the 70's

When he was at Leeds Alan Smith used to work his socks off.

I lose track of the amount of games I watch where the first or second Man Utd defender to track back to the Man Utd penalty area after a corner at the other end of the pitch is not in fact a defender at all but... Wayne Rooney.

is not at Leeds now, and tends not to be afforded the generous support and praise of the Gelderd faithful on the rare occasions he has returned.

a patriotic mention for Darren Fletcher, man of tonight's enthralling (although I kept switching between it and Rangers' crucial trip down the M8 to face St. Mirren!) Carling Cup semi against the 'noisy neighbours'.

Too often derided as 'Fergie's token Scotsman' (when SAF has never shown the slightest tendency, even in times of richer Caledonian harvest), I'm glad to see him gain some long overdue recognition (Rooney called him 'world-class').