Hamburg's Van der Vaart rebuffs January move

Hamburg SV skipper Rafael van der Vaart said on Thursday he will stay with the Bundesliga club until the end of the season at least.

كتب : Hatem Maher

الخميس، 18 أكتوبر 2007 - 19:03
Hamburg SV skipper Rafael van der Vaart said on Thursday he will stay with the Bundesliga club until the end of the season at least.

"I'm not looking for a move away from Hamburg in the winter transfer window," the Dutch midfielder told German daily Bild.

"I can guarantee that I will play for Hamburg at least until the summer. I still have goals to achieve with this club."

Spanish side Valencia made an offer for Van der Vaart in the summer but Hamburg rejected to offload the talented playmaker.

To Van der Vaart's surprise, Chelsea had a recent interest in acquiring his services.

"The timing of their interest was surprising. Nothing can happen before the transfer window re-opens in January," he added.

Meanwhile, the 24-year-old will be out for two weeks after sustaining a thigh injury during Holland's 2-0 victory over Slovenia in a Euro 2008 qualifier on Wednesday.