Gullit's touching tributes to Davie Cooper 30 years on from Rangers magician's tragic passing
03/23/2025 12:43 PM
To Rangers fans Davie Cooper is one of the club's all-time greats but for Ruud Gullit, the mesmeric winger is one of football's greatest ever players.
It's 30 years to the day since the late, great Davie Cooper lost his life at the age of only 39, suffering a tragic brain hemorrhage just months before he was set to hang up his boots whilst at Clydebank.
In a career defined by magical moments, the so-called Moody Blue was a reserved character off the pitch but a genius with the ball at his feet on it.
A dyed in the wool Rangers fan, Cooper famously 'played for the club he loved' over twelve long years and was the stand-out Ibrox star of his era.
But it's not just Rangers fans who will forever hold Super Cooper in high regard, the winger playing 540 games and lifting 13 trophies for the club between spells with Clydebank and Motherwell.
In a series of touching tributes, Dutch legend Ruud Gullit – himself one of the greatest footballers of the era – has always said that Davie Cooper is amongst the best players he ever shared a football pitch with.
Ruud Gullit: 'Davie Cooper forever'
Ruud Gullit has spoken about Davie Cooper publicly on several occasions, with the first moments being traced back to a Champions League clash between Rangers and Club Brugge in March 1993.
With Cooper working in the STV studios as part of the match's coverage, reporters unveiled a tape of Gullit waxing lyrical about the winger's skills.
Gullit's appreciation of Cooper began during a 3-3 pre-season friendly match between Rangers and Feyenoord in 1984, with the Dutch side eventually winning 7-6 on penalties.
The Rangers goalscorers on the day were Bobby Williamson, Ian Redford and Robert Prytz, whilst Feyenoord's goals came from Ruud Gullit, Carbo and Johan Cruyff.
"I think played once against him," Gullit told STV in 1993.
"I don't know, it was a friendly match against Feyenoord with Cruyff against him. He was a very great player.
"It's a pity that I didn't see him on the continent of course. He only played there in Scotland.
"He was for me one of the greatest players that I ever seen and I wish him a good year."
STV then showed the interview clip to Cooper, who responded: "I'm certainly surprised. It is a very big honour hearing a man like that saying something like that.
"No I certainly didn't (know he was a fan). I remember playing against him but I didn't know he was saying things like that about us.
"That's tremendous to hear from a player with his calibre."
Ray Wilkins would then joke: "That's the first time I've seen Davie Cooper lost for words."
This wasn't the only time Ruud Gullit would lavish Davie Cooper with praise.
In 2007, Gullit included Davie Cooper in what he described as a 'perfect all-time XI' alongside some of the greatest players who ever lived as part og an interview with Four Four Two.
Including Cooper at left-wing, Gullit wrote: "I played against him (with Feyenoord) when he was with Glasgow Rangers and he was a really skilful player. Unbelievably skilful. He didn't have much pace but he was a good dribbler who set up plenty of chances for team-mates as well as scoring some great goals himself."
As you can see, it's not exactly bad company for Cooper to be keeping:
In 2018, Gullit then shared a wonderful compilation of Davie Cooper on social media platform Twitter with the caption 'the magic that was Davie Cooper. I'll always remember you my friend'.
Speaking to Rangers in 2020 – on what was the 25th anniversary of Cooper's sad passing – Gullit once again paid tribute to the great man:
"Davie Cooper. I remember playing against him when I was a young kid. We were invited with Feyenoord to play a friendly in Scotland and then I saw this amazing left footy. I always remember him. I never forgot him.
"I was always wondering where he was and when people asked me later 'who was the best players that you met or played against?' Davie Cooper was one of them.
"It's a pity that he never could show these skills abroad or maybe in other competitions, in England for instance or in Italy. Because he would be unbelievable. So it's 25 years ago already, you know we have to celebrate him. Davie Cooper forever."
Ruud Gullit's career exemplifies scale of Rangers tribute
Ruud Gullit is widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers of the 1980s and 90s and a living legend of the game.
The Dutchman's distinctive dreadlocks made him a stand out in the famous Netherlands and AC Milan teams of his era, with Gullit even breaking the transfer record to move to Italy from PSV in 1987 (£6m – BBC Sport) to replace eventual Rangers midfielder Ray Wilkins.
Having played with the great Johan Cruyff at Feyenoord, Gullit's career took him to the upper echelons of Dutch and global football.
Making his name with the Netherlands, AC Milan and even spending time in England with Chelsea, the standard of player that Ruud both played with and against is nothing short of remarkable.
Gullit captained the Netherlands to Euro 1988 glory, scoring the opening goal in the Final whilst playing alongside the likes of Ronald Koeman, Frank Rijkaard and Marco van Basten.
Whilst the match is somewhat more famous for Van Basten's wonderful volley, to date it remains the Dutch national team's only major triumph.
Rijkaard and Van Basten were also part of Gullit's all-conquering AC Milan side which won back to back European Cups in 1989 and 1990, a team which included Paolo Maldini, Franco Baresi and Carlo Ancelotti.
In Italy, Gullit would also come up against the great Diego Maradona, the late 90s rivalry between Milan and Napoli defined by these two legendary footballers.
Gullit would also later go on to work with Gustavo Poyet and Gianfranco Zola at Chelsea after facing off against the best of what English football could offer.
And yet when it comes to who he believes was amongst the greatest he ever saw play the game, a modest Scotsman born in Hamilton is never far from his mind.
Ruud Gullit's words are a touching tribute to the qualities of the late, great Davie Cooper and today is a day of celebration for one of the greatest to ever play the game.
