Rafael Ferdinand Van der vaart (born 11 february 1983) is a dutch footballer who plays for german bundesliga club hamburger sv and the dutch national team. His preferred position is as an attacking midfielder; he can, however, also operate in other positions, such as second striker. Van der vaart began his career at afc ajax' famous youth academy and worked his way into the first team, debuting as a 17-year-old. So stunning was his impact he was hailed as the new johan cruyff. He was named dutch football talent of the year and became the first recipient of the golden boy award while at the club.