When I was younger, I always knew I was a pretty good player, but it was impossible to foresee how far I’d go. I had a left foot and vision like no one else, but I wasn't the quickest and my right foot wasn't so great, so there were things I needed to work on.

When I was young, the best moment came when I was 10 and I got invited to the academy. I remember getting all this Ajax training gear and suddenly I was able to call myself an Ajax player.

I've always said the one change that would've been nice is if I'd been a bit faster - like fast enough to be able to run past people instead of just being overtaken all the time!

Rafael van der Vaart Quotes