Football
Stephan Uersfeld, Germany correspondent 9y

Rafael van der Vaart quiet on future to focus on Hamburg relegation battle

Rafael van der Vaart said that he is not thinking about his future with Hamburg and is instead focusing all his attentions on helping the club avoid relegation this season.

Van der Vaart, 31, has thrived in his new holding midfield role as new coach Joe Zinnbauer has used the former Tottenham star in a much more defensive position in the past two home games against Werder Bremen and Mainz.

Hamburg have now recorded three consecutive wins at home, with Sunday's 2-1 victory over Mainz seeing the club move up to 13th in the Bundesliga standings. However, with only three points between HSV and bottom-of-the-league VfB Stuttgart, they now need to underline their return to form by getting a result at SC Freiburg, who are 16th, and Van der Vaart is keen to focus on the next game rather than worry about extending his contract which ends in 2015.

"I have now played three good games, and those questions about my contract are brought up again," Van der Vaart told kicker. "But my future's just not an issue right now. It's all about getting out there until Christmas."

The Netherlands international, who missed the 2014 World Cup through injury, has also not given up on playing another major tournament after getting a call-up but having to pull out of the Euro 2016 qualifiers in September through injury.

"I feel in better shape than before," he said. "I have always said that my goal remains to play one more tournament. And when I am fit I can still help my country. I hope that Guus Hiddink calls me."

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