Rafael van der Vaart claims Spurs can win Premier League if they sign Hakim Ziyech

Former Spurs midfielder Rafael van der Vaart has claimed that his former club need to sign Hakim Ziyech to win the Premier League.

Speaking on Ziggo Sport earlier this week, the Dutchman implored that Tottenham should get the Chelsea winger.

“Hakim Ziyech has to join Tottenham,” said Van der Vaart, via Daily Mail. “If Spurs get Hakim Ziyech, they could win the Premier League. I am serious.”

Currently, Spurs sit third in the table, five points adrift of Arsenal in first. They also managed to stop a two-game losing streak last weekend with their comeback win against Bournemouth.

Now, in order to move up the table, Van der Vaart believes Ziyech is the missing piece of the Tottenham puzzle.

The former Ajax star has further Dutch supporters too, in the form of Marco van Basten. In October, the three-time Ballon d’Or winner expressed his admiration for Ziyech. He also explained his disappointment at the winger’s situation at Chelsea.

“There is another transfer window coming up,” said Van Basten, via Metro. “It is sad and a shame. Ziyech is a great player. We have to see someone like that, we watch TV for such a player, and we come to the stadium.

“It is a pity for the whole of football that Ziyech is on the bench [at Chelsea]. If these kinds of players do not get minutes, it is not good for football.”

Recently, Hakim Ziyech has fallen out of favour at Chelsea, receiving limited playing time.

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This season, Ziyech has made just seven appearances for Chelsea in all competitions so far. Additionally, to make matters worse, six of these have been as a substitute. His sole start? The Blues’ 2-1 defeat at Southampton in August.

As a result of the limited playing time, Ziyech is yet to register a goal contribution in 2022/23, too.

Ever since his move to Chelsea in 2020, the Moroccan has struggled to nail down a regular place in the team. He has also played under multiple managers, which does not help much either.

In his first two full league campaigns, Ziyech made 23 appearances in each. He only managed to score six league goals across these two seasons, though.

And, in 90 overall appearances at Chelsea, the winger has managed 14 goals and 10 assists. So, Ziyech has arguably been an underwhelming signing.

Reports last summer suggested that the Moroccan wanted to move to AC Milan – however, this failed to materialise. Other rumours hint that this move could happen in January, though.

Pundits and ex-players clearly believe in Ziyech’s talent. Who knows? Maybe Spurs and Conte will heed Van der Vaart’s advice and give Hakim Ziyech a fresh start in North London.

Featured image credit: Getty