Has Rafael Van der Vaart got the ability to take Spurs to the next level?

When the news broke on deadline day about Spurs trying to push a deal for Rafael Van der Vaart through, I honestly couldn't believe it. My beloved Spurs trying to pull off the biggest coup on deadline day was like music to my ears. Rafael Van der Vaart is a player I have admired for years now and to have him wearing the famous white shirt would be a sight to believe. Spurs, over the seasons, tend to enjoy there fair share of flair players - Hoddle, Waddle, Ginola, Freund (just kidding their!), Modric and now Van der Vaart would be joining them. The question is, however, is he the man to take Spurs up another level?

Honestly? I think he can. Maybe not to title winning glory but rather to ensure Spurs remain in the top 4 for years to come. His passion, winning mentality and experience have all been key to Spurs' improvement in fortunes following their less than impressive start to the 2010/11 season. His ability to unlock defences and calmness under pressure has aided Spurs greatly since his arrival on September 1st. Two of Van der Vaart's games in a Spurs shirt really stand out for me that indicate his key attributes.

The first game is the home fixture against Wolves on the 18th of September. With Wolves 1-0 and Spurs seemingly unable to break down them down, it appeared as though Wolves were going to repeat their smash and grab performance from last season. Yet, in the 76th minute, Spurs were awarded a penalty following a 60-yard Alan Hutton run. Granted, the run from deep was a great one from the Scottish right back however, the penalty from Van der Vaart epitomised his personality off the pitch with the calmest of penalties from the Dutch playmaker sparking a Spurs rally that led to a 3-1 victory for the North London outfit. It appeared as though the boys in white had found their new penalty taker in the process....or so we all thought.

This leads me onto the other fixture that really stands out in my Spurs memory banks. The first ever (proper) Champions League match at White Hart Lane at home to the defending Dutch Champions, FC Twente. Following to London derby defeats to Arsenal and West Ham respectively, Van der Vaart personally took it upon himself to take the game by the scruff of the neck. Chance after chance fell to Van der Vaart only for the FC Twente keeper, Bulgarian Nikolay Mihailov, to deny him from open play and from the penalty spot to keep the scores level going into half time. However, a moment of sheer brilliance from the Dutchman broke the deadlock in the 47th minute with an delightfully executed half volley on the turn to finally end his first half battle with Mihailov in the FC Twente goal. The one black spot on his performance this game was that the talented midfielder's match was pre-maturely ended in the 61st minute when he received his marching orders for his second booking following his second clumsy challenge of the match leaving him suspended for Tottenham's massive Group A clash against defending Champions, Inter Milan. Nonetheless, his performance against Twente will long live in the memory as one of his finest as he combined passion, technical ability and an eye for goal for a fantastic 61 minutes.

Van der Vaart will be sorely missed for the away encounter in Milan and, unfortunately for that, I am not particularly confident of gaining anymore than a point, at best. Still, stranger things have happened in football and I will be hoping my beloved Tottenham can come away from the San Siro with a positive result.

All in all, I am one of Van der Vaart's biggest fans and to have him starting in a Spurs shirt is certainly a good thing for everyone associated with Tottenham and I am 100% confident he can aid in propelling Spurs to the higher reaches of the Premiership maybe not to the glory of a title but his signing is a sign of intent that Spurs are a team on the up and, should he, and others, stay on a Spurs, I can't see why Tottenham shouldn't be considered a genuine, consistent title contender in the next 5 years. Well, here is hoping anyway!

Thanks for reading and I will write again when I can.

Laters,

Macca