Tottenham fans hold Rafael van der Vaart in very high regard after his hugely successful time in north London.
The Dutchman scored 28 goals and provided 18 assists in 77 appearances for Spurs, proving to be one of the best technicians in the club’s history.
Tottenham fans have rarely seen such a technically sound footballer since Van der Vaart’s exit – barring Christian Eriksen – although Spurs now have a golden chance to sign another player of this ilk.
What’s the story?
Well, a player by the name of Branco van den Boomen is having himself quite the season in Ligue 1.
The Dutchman has scored five goals, while also impressively providing nine assists, in 24 appearances across all competitions for Toulouse so far this term.
Van den Boomen also had a phenomenal return of goal involvements in the 2021/22 campaign, scoring 12 goals along with a whopping 23 assists in 41 outings.
Like Van der Vaart was, the 27-year-old is also a set-piece specialist, which would give Tottenham an edge from dead-ball situations which they have lacked since the likes of Eriksen and Kieran Trippier departed.
Crucially, Van den Boomen becomes a free agent in June, so Daniel Levy – not known for his lavish spending – would surely be willing to sanction the move in the absence of a transfer fee.
Tottenham would have Van der Vaart 2.0
Some may argue that Tottenham should be signing players younger than the age of 27 in order for them to be long-term options.
However, Van der Vaart joined Spurs from Real Madrid aged 27 and was able to make an instant impact, so the fact Van den Boomen is also 27 should not put anybody off.
Of course, Tottenham fans want to see proper investment this summer rather than have Levy rummaging around the bargain bins, but in this instance, this particular bargain is too attractive to turn down.
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