Rafael van der Vaart has said he peaked at Tottenham after announcing his retirement from football this week.
The Dutchman spent two years at Spurs, scoring 28 goals in 77 appearances before returning to former club Hamburg.
Tottenham signed Van der Vaart from Real Madrid seemingly out of thin air on deadline day of the 2010 summer transfer window.
The 35-year-old played for four clubs after leaving Spurs and has now called time on an impressive career.
And Van der Vaart believes his best years as a footballer were at White Hart Lane.
“That was my two very best years, two years of top performance, many competitions,” Van der Vaart told NOS (via the Daily Mail).
“I played in a great team with fantastic players, like (Gareth) Bale and (Luka) Modric, which was a pleasure.”
The midfielder turned forward endeared himself to the Tottenham fans with a string of fine performances against north London rivals Arsenal.
Unfortunately, he suffered with a number of hamstring injuries that hindered his fitness and consistency.
I still remember the excitement when he arrived at the club, such was the surprise of Spurs signing a genuine top-level player.
His spell will be fondly remembered by the Tottenham supporters despite the fact he only spent two seasons at the Lane.
