Tottenham Hotspur fans have hailed former midfielder Rafael van der Vaart on his birthday.

The Dutchman, of course, spent two years at the club following his move from Real Madrid in 2010.

In total, the 36-year-old made 77 appearances for the club, scoring 28 goals and also registering 18 assists. In all the games in which he scored against Arsenal, too, he was never once on the losing side.

And fans have taken to Twitter to wish him a happy birthday and wax lyrical about his talent.

Indeed, some supporters have wished for the retired ace to return to the club.

Van der Vaart endured something of a nomadic career after his spell at Spurs ended, playing for Hamburg, Real Betis, Midtjylland and Esbjerg fB.

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And two fans still believe that he ought to return to north London.

The deal to sign the player was something of a surprise at the time.

Spurs chairman Daniel Levy managed to bring him in on deadline day in 2010.

As Sky Sports reported at the time, Spurs emerged as contenders to sign him only a few hours before the summer deadline, eventually paying £8m for his signature.

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