Consider the master Dutch footballers - Cruyff, Van Basten, Van Persie - all incredibly gifted but also temperamental and a touch arrogant.
And Dirk Kuyt? He is the complete opposite - a dedicated team man with a super-human work-rate, rock-solid temperament and modesty to the point of shyness.
His self-deprecating humour is so strong that he will readily tell you how different he is to the stereotype Dutch footballer.
"I have heard the jokes that I can't be from Holland, and I know that I am not a typical Dutch player. Maybe I am different to the typical Dutch character too," he said.
"I'm from a fishing village where you have to work really hard, at sea five or six days a week, come home for one day and then be off working even for weeks at a time, so the mentality comes from that I think.
"That is my character, which is what the Liverpool fans see. But if you are talking football-wise then I am definitely not a typical Dutch player.
"You think of them being technically gifted, like Cruyff and Van Basten, Bergkamp and Van Persie - I am just a different kind of player.
"I do like to work very hard every game, but I enjoy myself, and maybe I'm a little more than just hard work.
"I am happy with what I have achieved so far with my own style, and I am still very hungry to do better. I still have the feeling that I can progress, get better and achieve more." Given Holland's history of internal squabbling within their squads, it is clear that Kuyt really is cut from a different cloth.
His attitude and incredible spirit has been a key factor for Liverpool this season, making him arguably their most impressive performer.
He has scored 15 goals and created countless others, and after experiencing the lows of a horrible period last season when it seemed he may even leave, things are finally going his way again. Not that Kuyt is surprised.
Throughout his career he has had people tell him he's not good enough, that he is out of his depth and he can go no further.
Each time he has defied the predictions.
"When I was a kid I didn't get picked up by a professional club, and was just an amateur so I could never have dreamt that I would be part of a club like this.
"I was with an amateur club called Quick Boys and my dream was simply to play in the first team. So to be here now is beyond my wildest dreams.
"When I first started my career, people tried to tell me I wouldn't be a professional, I wouldn't play for a big club in Holland, I wouldn't reach the national team, I wouldn't play for an important club in Europe, and I wouldn't survive at Anfield.
"And I have always proved them wrong, I have always reached the next level. I am still getting better, still reaching my targets and still learning every day.
"Every step along that way I have had another dream and have achieved it. So I will not stop dreaming until we get what we want with Liverpool, and that is the title, this season or next." At every stage of his career Kuyt has overcome hardship and heartache. His father died 18 months ago, a tragedy that struck him during one of the lowest points of his career.
But he has overcome everything, and he believes that even if Manchester United, as now seems certain, are crowned champions tomorrow, then Liverpool will overhaul them next season. "This team can be proud of itself, and the way we have played this season no matter what happens in the final week, we can raise our heads high.
"We have beaten the biggest teams, United and Chelsea, twice each in the league. We can say that there were too many draws in the home games, but you have to learn from it because we are a young team.
"We have a sense now, a really strong belief that we can go on and achieve what we want because the quality is there and the progress is there. If it is not enough this time we will definitely be there for the big push next season.
"The team is getting more experienced, and importantly, the players are now in it for the long term. Important players have agreed new contracts and they all believe they are part of something big. The belief is there." If it happens, no one will be prouder than Kuyt, and not just because once again he will have defied incredible odds.
When his father, Dirk senior, died, he offered his son one final piece of advice.
"I am proud that my father was able to watch me play here at Liverpool in my first year, and the last game he ever watched was the Champions League final which was at the highest level in one of the biggest finals and I scored.
"His wish was that I stay here as long as possible, and that is my wish too. I want to be part of what is happening at Anfield.
"The proudest moment for me was signing for this club, being part of one of the biggest clubs in the world, and of course my father was proud of that fact.
"It is a famous club, one of the biggest in the world, and to be part of it with such a great history for me is something you want to be around as long as possible.
"Every year I am here I am proud. Every year you have to fight for your place and every year there are better and better players coming here to take your place, so I am proud to still be here and to have a new three-year contract."
And Dirk Kuyt? He is the complete opposite - a dedicated team man with a super-human work-rate, rock-solid temperament and modesty to the point of shyness.
His self-deprecating humour is so strong that he will readily tell you how different he is to the stereotype Dutch footballer.
"I have heard the jokes that I can't be from Holland, and I know that I am not a typical Dutch player. Maybe I am different to the typical Dutch character too," he said.
"I'm from a fishing village where you have to work really hard, at sea five or six days a week, come home for one day and then be off working even for weeks at a time, so the mentality comes from that I think.
"That is my character, which is what the Liverpool fans see. But if you are talking football-wise then I am definitely not a typical Dutch player.
"You think of them being technically gifted, like Cruyff and Van Basten, Bergkamp and Van Persie - I am just a different kind of player.
"I do like to work very hard every game, but I enjoy myself, and maybe I'm a little more than just hard work.
"I am happy with what I have achieved so far with my own style, and I am still very hungry to do better. I still have the feeling that I can progress, get better and achieve more." Given Holland's history of internal squabbling within their squads, it is clear that Kuyt really is cut from a different cloth.
His attitude and incredible spirit has been a key factor for Liverpool this season, making him arguably their most impressive performer.
He has scored 15 goals and created countless others, and after experiencing the lows of a horrible period last season when it seemed he may even leave, things are finally going his way again. Not that Kuyt is surprised.
Throughout his career he has had people tell him he's not good enough, that he is out of his depth and he can go no further.
Each time he has defied the predictions.
"When I was a kid I didn't get picked up by a professional club, and was just an amateur so I could never have dreamt that I would be part of a club like this.
"I was with an amateur club called Quick Boys and my dream was simply to play in the first team. So to be here now is beyond my wildest dreams.
"When I first started my career, people tried to tell me I wouldn't be a professional, I wouldn't play for a big club in Holland, I wouldn't reach the national team, I wouldn't play for an important club in Europe, and I wouldn't survive at Anfield.
"And I have always proved them wrong, I have always reached the next level. I am still getting better, still reaching my targets and still learning every day.
"Every step along that way I have had another dream and have achieved it. So I will not stop dreaming until we get what we want with Liverpool, and that is the title, this season or next." At every stage of his career Kuyt has overcome hardship and heartache. His father died 18 months ago, a tragedy that struck him during one of the lowest points of his career.
But he has overcome everything, and he believes that even if Manchester United, as now seems certain, are crowned champions tomorrow, then Liverpool will overhaul them next season. "This team can be proud of itself, and the way we have played this season no matter what happens in the final week, we can raise our heads high.
"We have beaten the biggest teams, United and Chelsea, twice each in the league. We can say that there were too many draws in the home games, but you have to learn from it because we are a young team.
"We have a sense now, a really strong belief that we can go on and achieve what we want because the quality is there and the progress is there. If it is not enough this time we will definitely be there for the big push next season.
"The team is getting more experienced, and importantly, the players are now in it for the long term. Important players have agreed new contracts and they all believe they are part of something big. The belief is there." If it happens, no one will be prouder than Kuyt, and not just because once again he will have defied incredible odds.
When his father, Dirk senior, died, he offered his son one final piece of advice.
"I am proud that my father was able to watch me play here at Liverpool in my first year, and the last game he ever watched was the Champions League final which was at the highest level in one of the biggest finals and I scored.
"His wish was that I stay here as long as possible, and that is my wish too. I want to be part of what is happening at Anfield.
"The proudest moment for me was signing for this club, being part of one of the biggest clubs in the world, and of course my father was proud of that fact.
"It is a famous club, one of the biggest in the world, and to be part of it with such a great history for me is something you want to be around as long as possible.
"Every year I am here I am proud. Every year you have to fight for your place and every year there are better and better players coming here to take your place, so I am proud to still be here and to have a new three-year contract."
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