In April 2011, the Tottenham favourite put the ball through his opponent's legs during a north London derby and fans loved it

For Tottenham fans, it was a thing of beauty.

Not once, but twice Spurs favourite Rafael van der Vaart nutmegged Jack Wilshere during a barnstorming north London derby in April 2011.

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.

Van der Vaart nutmegged Wilshere twice during a north London derby in 2011 and had some words of encouragement as he humiliated his opponent

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, 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.”

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 the 36-year-old has never been able to resist digging out Arsenal, who play Tottenham this weekend live on talkSPORT at 12:30pm on 2 March.

Earlier this month when Spurs were preparing to play Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League, he posted a video of one his favourite goals – a 2006 Champions League belter for Hamburg against the Gunners, while referencing the fact they were playing in the Europa League.