Ruud van Nistelrooy is a retired Dutch professional footballer who is widely regarded as one of the greatest goal scorers of his generation. He played for some of the biggest football clubs in Europe, including PSV Eindhoven, Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Hamburg.

Van Nistelrooy was born on July 1, 1976, in Oss, Netherlands. He began his professional football career at Dutch club Den Bosch, where he scored 12 goals in 31 appearances. In 1998, he joined Heerenveen and scored 13 goals in his first season, which caught the attention of PSV Eindhoven.

Van Nistelrooy joined PSV in 1999 and immediately became a sensation, scoring 31 goals in his debut season. He continued his impressive form in the following seasons, scoring 29 and 25 goals respectively. In total, he scored 62 goals in 67 appearances for PSV.

In 2001, Manchester United signed Van Nistelrooy for a reported fee of £19 million. He had an immediate impact at the club, scoring 36 goals in his debut season, which helped United win the Premier League title. He continued his impressive form in the following seasons, scoring 44 and 30 goals respectively. Van Nistelrooy won the Premier League Golden Boot three times and was named the PFA Players' Player of the Year in 2003.

After five successful seasons at Manchester United, Van Nistelrooy joined Real Madrid in 2006. He scored 64 goals in 96 appearances for the Spanish giants and helped them win the La Liga title in the 2006-07 season.

In 2010, Van Nistelrooy joined German club Hamburg. He scored 12 goals in his first season, but injuries limited his appearances in the following seasons, and he retired from professional football in 2012.

In total, Van Nistelrooy scored 347 goals in 589 appearances in his professional football career. He was known for his clinical finishing, physicality, and ability to score from both inside and outside the penalty box. Van Nistelrooy is considered one of the greatest goal scorers in the history of football, and his contributions to the sport have earned him a place among the football legends.