Van der Vaart: 'Ronaldo a guarantee of success. Juve are Champions League favourites'

16 gen 2019

After hanging up his boots last November, Rafael Van der Vaart spoke to Marca in a long interview, addressing various interesting topics.

"Being out of the field? I feel good, although I am a little sad because I miss football matches. There are times when my head asks me to play but my physical condition caused me to retire and now I am happy to focus on other things," he said.

"Would it have been dangerous to continue? I think so. Right now I have no discomfort but if I want to play football I need to be one hundred per cent ready but I was not and I am not. It was frustrating not being able to give my best, so I opted to hang up my boots.

If there is one moment to use My Way, this is it. It wasn’t an easy decision to say goodbye to the game I love the most. But words can’t express how grateful I am for those 18 wonderful years of professional football. Thank you all! pic.twitter.com/SDpmb5oSUV
— Rafael van der Vaart (@rafvdvaart) November 5, 2018

"Real Madrid-Ajax in the Champions League? I really want to see the match between two great teams. Ajax is impressive, has many talents and win all the games playing fantastic football that I like to see. It will be a very complicated match for Real.

"Real Madrid? I was there with the best players in the world: Ramos, Guti, Raul, Ronaldo, Kaka, Benzema. It was something special. Coinciding with Cristiano, for example, is something impressive. Right now everyone recognizes how important he was for Real Madrid.

"Juventus Champions League favourites? For sure. The team that has Cristiano in their ranks will always be a favourite. He makes his teammates better. You give him the ball and you know he can score, it is a guarantee of success.

"Isco? He is crazy for me, the best player in the world. But he always has problems with coaches. Zidane never trusted him one hundred per cent. When Madrid play, I see if he's starting. If not, I'm going home.

"Real Madrid to win the Champions League again? It is possible. If someone can achieve this, it is Real Madrid. A prediction against Ajax? I am bad at doing this kind of thing, but I'm going to say that it will end 2-2 in Holland," Van der Vaart concluded.