Van der Vaart reflects on Spurs years

The 35-year-old called time while with Esbjerg in Denmark, though has played for more illustrious clubs in previous years. The Dutchman turned out for some of the continent's biggst clubs, in Real Madrid and Ajax, though said his time in England was his best stint. 

Van der Vaart made 77 appearances for Spurs between 2010-12, scoring 28 goals in the process. Speaking to 'NOS' of his time with the London club, he remarked: "That was my two very best years, two years of top performance, many competitions.

"I played in a great team with fantastic players, like Bale and Modric, which was a pleasure."

The playmaker also commented on his time with the Dutch national team, seeing the 2010 World Cup final as a career highlight, although he ended up on the losing side. 

"That was the highlight in my career, but at the same time the low point.

"If you think about it as a child that you can play a World Cup finals... We were so terribly close.

"Those fans were really fantastic, and that's not a joke. They were there for so many of the big tournaments, you will not forget that.

"Not giving those people a World Cup is the only blotch on my international career."