If you saw Rafael van der Vaart's reaction after being substituted out coming out of Tottenham Hotspur's match against Manchester City today and leaving us to play with 10 men, you might have thought it was just frustration at picking up a knock. Instead, it seems that the Dutchman's anger was probably because he had a serious injury that he knew the extent of. The news has come out post-match that van der Vaart has torn his hamstring and will be out for several weeks.

Rafa has already withdrawn from the Netherlands squad that had two Euro 2012 qualifiers in the next week, and we should feel a bit fortunate that his first week off will be in a week when we don't play. However, he might be out for a month or so after club football returns, which is a serious blow to the club. He was not good today or against Manchester United, but the club simply has no better options at the moment.

We wish Rafa a speedy recovery, both for his personal health and the fortunes of the team.