Rafael van der Vaart nutmegged Jack Wilshere twice in memorable Tottenham vs Arsenal north London derby in 2011 and had words of advice for young midfielder

For Tottenham fans, it was a thing of beauty.

Ten years ago, White Hart Lane favourite Rafael van der Vaart not once, but twice nutmegged Jack Wilshere during a barnstorming north London derby in April 2011.

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In his two years at White Hart Lane, the Dutchman was a huge hit with fans and Van der Vaart has gone as far to say leaving the club was a mistake.

In 63 Premier League games between 2010 and 2012 he scored 24 times, with the game against bitter rivals Arsenal a particular highlight.

Speaking to Four Four Two in 2018, Van der Vaart was asked if Wilshere, 19 at the time and a player Spurs fans love to hate, said anything after the humiliation.

“I don’t remember him saying anything to me,” he said. “All I remember is what I said to him afterwards: ‘Close your legs next time!’”

Van der Vaart on the derby

“I never had anything against Arsenal, but when I joined Spurs I tried to learn about the club’s traditions and I soon found out about the magnitude of the match.

“I always try to immerse myself in the emotions of the fans, and in the derbies against Arsenal I tried to give Spurs fans a little bit of their pride back.

“I wanted them to have something to cheer about at work the next morning.”

But it’s a game he remembers fondly for other reasons, too. “I had one of my best games that night. We went 1-0 down, I scored the equaliser, but then we let in two before pulling it back to 3-3, with me scoring another goal.

“Luka Modric missed a big chance to make it 4-3 towards the end, which was a pity because we needed to win. I don’t think the supporters had often experienced a derby quite as good as that one – it was an incredible match.”

While Spurs didn’t win that particular pulsating derby, Van der Vaart was involved in another memorable one when Spurs won at the home of their rivals for the first time in 17 years.

He scored, as did Gareth Bale in a stunning comeback from 2-0 down at half-time to win 3-2.

Van der Vaart, who retired from playing in 2018, has also explained his time in the Premier League was the best thing to ever happen to him in football.

His arrival from Real Madrid in 2010 initially stunned supporters on transfer deadline day and he quickly wrote himself into folklore thanks in part to his tendency to score in the north London derby.

Immediately a key player, he displayed his creativity and ability in front of goal straight away, scoring three goals in his first four Premier League games.

And he revealed playing under Harry Redknapp was also fun.

“What a manager, he just made us enjoy our games,” he said, recalling his team talk ahead of a Champions League game at the Bernabeu.

“Before Real Madrid, the team-talk I remember was similar to always – he just said, ‘they are a great team, no doubt, we have a great team too. We have great players in here and on our day we can beat them’.

“That was how he looked at football and I like a manager who sees the game in that way. It was true but we also needed 11 against 11 to have a chance.”