Van der Vaart linked to Italy

Tottenham midfielder Rafael van der Vaart wants to play in Serie A before he hangs up his boots.

Italian giants Juventus, Inter and Roma are all rumoured to be interested in the 29-year-old.

A return to Germany is also being suggested as Schalke are reportedly chasing the former Hamburg man but he has chosen to distance himself from speculation, insisting that he is enjoying life at White Hart Lane.

He told Dutch Playboy magazine: “I would like to play in Italy once. Much has been said about the Serie A not being attractive, but I have a good feeling about it.”

Van der Vaart would like to stay involved with football once he’s retired from playing.

“I would like to become a person somewhere between a coach and technical director,” he said.

“Helping players, talking to them – just name it. A squad is very big nowadays and because of that players don’t always get attention.

“Sometimes players who are out of favour are treated like garbage.”