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Tottenham legend Rafael van der Vaart says Arsenal have a player he actually loves

Rafael van der Vaart is a true modern day Tottenham icon.

The Dutch midfielder was an absolute joy to watch during his time at Spurs in the early 2010s, and his link-up with Luka Modric and Gareth Bale led to a very exciting era at Tottenham under Harry Redknapp.

Of course, as a Spurs legend, Van der Vaart usuall🍎y isn’t too kind to Arsenal and their players.

The pundit called Declan Rice ‘useless’ after his poor performance in the Euro 2024 final, but there is one Arsenal player he’s now res♐erved some special praise for.

Indeed, speaking on The Lineup, Van der Vaart has hailed Martin Odegaard as one of his🎶 favourite players in the game today.

Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images
Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images

Martin Odegaard is one of Rafael van der Vaart’s favourite players

Van der Vaart spoke about this Arsenal team, claiming that♎ Odegaard is one of his favourite players.

Odegaard has been brilliant for Arsenꦕal since his return from injury, and Van der Vaart has now hailed ﷽the midfielder.

“The positive style with Arteta, I really love it. Odegaard is one of my favourite players. He’s one of those players, you thin༒k physically he’s ok, not the best, but his feet, wow,” Van der Vaaꦬrt said.

Odegaard compared to Van der Vaart

It makes a lot of sense why Van der Vaart is such a fan of Odegaard. After 🎶all, these two players are very sꦿimilar in a lot of ways.

🍨Indeed, they’re both left-footed attacking midfielཧders who rely on their technical abilities more than their physical prowess.

Both players spent time at Real Madrid before finding their🎃 best form in north London too.

So, the big question is, who is the🔴 better player between the two?

If you compare Odegaard’s stats for Arsenal to Van der Vaart’s stats for Tottenham, you get some inte꧅resting findings.

Martin Odegaard at ArsenalRafael van der Vaart at Tottenham
Games16273
Goals3628
Assists2818
Games per goal4.52.6
Games per assist5.84

These💮 two are and were both world-class pl✅ayers in their prime, but Van der Vaart may just about edge things here.

Thisꦇ is also reflected in the numbers both players put up at Re🍎al Madrid.

Rafael van der Vaart at Real Madrid Martin Odegaard at Real Madrid
Games7311
Goals120
Assists130

Odegaard is only 25 years old, so he still has a long way to go in his career, and he could end up surpassing Van der Vaart 🅺and his legacy, but, at the moment, it would be fair to argue that the Dutchman was the better player.

These two have both been a joy to watch for Tottenham and Arsenal respectively, and one can only imagine what these two could’ve achieved if they were playing in the sa🌼me team.