Having hoovered up 13 goals and nine assists from the Spurs midfield last season, Rafael Van der Vaart placed himself firmly in the heavy-hitter bracket. Spot-kicks and set-piece delivery, coupled with a goal threat that few, if any, midfielders can better, he delivers a package that warrants a hefty outlay. Predictably, however, the Dutchman has failed to maintain the consistency demanded of a player with an initial price tag of 10.0 this term.
Van der Vaart’s dairylea hamstrings are the concern. Once again his season has been blighted by twinges and twangs, with constant reoccurrences disrupting his pitch-time, along with more recent calf and ankle injuries. Subsequently, his campaign has been limited to 24 starts: a chain of 11 appearances being his best run of games. Harry Redknapp also appears to remain skeptical on Van der Vaart’s fitness, having subbed him off on 16 occasions so far this term.
Therein lies the problem. Van der Vaart would seem set to start both of Tottenham’s Gameweek 36 fixtures with relegation threatened Blackburn and Bolton, but is unlikely to record 90 minutes in both. Nonetheless, from his support role alongside the awkward talents of Emmanuel Adebayor, Van der Vaart is well capable of inflicting damage and fetching returns given an hour on the pitch.
Having delivered six double figure hauls already this season, including four in five Gameweeks in a chain of 53 points in October, Van der Vaart’s potential to explode is obvious. Few midfielders can rival that and, looking at the fixtures, in addition to Tottenham’s undoubted motivation to attack and score goals as they pursue a Champions League slot, everything falls into place.
With Fantasy Premier League (FPL) ownership of under 6%, the Dutchman also qualifies as an unlikely differential. Just the ticket for those looking to bridge a seemingly impossible mini-league deficit. If Tottenham do overcome their current malaise over their remaining matches, Van der Vaart could well prove to be the catalyst.
