Rafael van der Vaart has told FourFourTwo how a nap almost cost him his last-minute move to Tottenham in August 2010
The playmaker found himself surplus to requirements at Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid following the arrival of Werder Bremen’s Mesut Ozil, with Bayern Munich reportedly pulling out of a deal for the Dutchman a day before the transfer window closed.
Van der Vaart was prepared to stay at the Santiago Bernabeu and fight for his place, but when Spurs had an £8 million offer for the midfielder accepted only a few hours ahead of the deadline, he had a quick decision to make. Or at least he should have…
My lawyer said Spurs were interested. I asked him if I could think about it. He replied that I had two hours, so I took a nap. Suddenly I was jolted awake by the phone. It was now 5.40pm! I thought for a split second, then said, 'Yeah, let’s do it!'
Speaking exclusively in the April 2018 issue of FourFourTwo magazine, the 35-year-old explains: “It was very last minute. Jose Mourinho had been honest about my chances, telling me they had bought Mesut Ozil to play in my position.
“He said I could stay, but that I wasn’t in his starting XI. At that point I was still keen to stay at Real Madrid for another season, so I headed to a training camp with the Dutch national team.
“But at around 4pm on deadline day, my lawyer called me to say that Tottenham were interested in signing me. I asked him if I could think about it. He replied that I had to decide within two hours. I started to evaluate everything, then took a little nap...
“Suddenly I was jolted awake by the phone going off. It was about 5.40pm and my lawyer was on the phone again, telling me that I had to decide there and then.
“I thought for a split second, then said, 'Yeah, let’s do it'. I had no time to overthink it or discuss it with anybody – it was pure intuition. Very soon I realised how happy I was with the decision. From the first moment I arrived at Spurs Lodge, I felt at home.”
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Van der Vaart, who now plays for Midtjylland in Denmark following a short stint at Real Betis, made 77 outings for Spurs and top-scored for them in 2010/11 – the season in which they beat holders Inter Milan en route to the Champions League quarter-finals.
He speaks warmly of the man who brought him to White Hart Lane, explaining that Harry Redknapp’s old-school managerial style suited his game very well at the time.
Harry Redknapp’s style suited my own very well. He was a magical guy – a father figure – but he could also be rock-hard
“He was a magical guy – a father figure – but Harry could also be rock-hard,” reveals Van der Vaart. “During a team talk, he would pull out a little piece of paper on which he had written down the starting line-up and then say things to us like, 'Just give the ball to Luka [Modric], then Luka can try to find Rafa, and you will win the game'.
“Then, if we'd played a really good first half, he would openly praise you, saying things like, 'F**king hell, Rafa, what a player!' He gave you a boost – you would run faster for someone like him. Harry Redknapp’s style suited my own very well.”
Read the full One-on-One interview with Rafael van der Vaart in the April 2018 issue of FourFourTwo magazine. A best young players special, we speak exclusively to Kylian Mbappe, Ryan Sessegnon, Richarlison, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Justin Kluivert, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Harry Winks and Timo Werner, and meet the people who shaped Marcus Rashford’s flourishing career. Plus, we experience the ‘Israel-Palestine Derby’ between Beitar Jerusalem and Bnei Sakhnin, after Donald Trump poured oil on the flames of an already-heated affair. Order a copy today, and then become a subscriber!
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Gregg Davies is the Chief Sub Editor of FourFourTwo magazine, joining the team in January 2008 and spending seven years working on the website. He supports non-league behemoths Hereford and commentates on Bulls matches for Radio Hereford FC. His passions include chocolate hobnobs and attempting to shoehorn Ronnie Radford into any office conversation.
