'Former player who is too..' Rafael Van Der Vaart mocks himself to put an end to the controversy with Lamine Yamal

Football pundit Van der Vaart responded to Lamine Yamal's hilarious Instagram post that aimed a dig at him. Former Tottenham Hotspur star and Dutch international Van der Vaart had criticised Spanish teen prodigy Lamine Yamal following the conclusion of the first-leg fixture between Spain and the Netherlands. He had criticised Lamine's mannerisms as a 17-year-old footballer on the pitch.

Ex-footballer turned expert Van der Vaart was critical of Lamine's approach on the pitch, especially when he struggled to get past the Dutch defence.

Van Der Vaart responded to Lamine's post

Earlier, Van der Vaart was critical of Lamine Yamal, as he said: 

 "Yamal didn't seem to take kindly to facing [Jorrel] Hato. These are things I notice: I see things that are starting to bother me a little. Pants a little lower, not making much of an effort, slightly superficial gestures. That's when I think: if you're that young, you should be happy with every minute you play for Spain. No matter how good you are, at that age, you have to prove it every minute and in every game."

After a scintillating victory over the Dutch side in the second leg, La Roja prodigy Lamine took to his Instagram to celebrate the success and also aimed a dig at Van der Vaart's comments with a cheeky caption along with his picture. 

"Pants down, a goal, missed penalty AND IN THE SEMIFINALS, HEHEHE GO SPAIN"  read Yamal's caption.

Van der Vaart had now apparently put an end to the controversy. He praised the Catalan star and asserted him to be a world-class player. He also advised him not to bother too much about the comments from a retired 'overweight' footballer, referring to himself.

"The goal he scored was of great quality. Still, I would advise him not to worry so much about a former player who is too fat and says something about him. That doesn’t matter at all." Van der Vaart said.

Lamine Yamal is set to return to his club Barcelona after the international break, who are in contention to win a treble this season. As for his national side, Spain will take on France in the semi-finals of the UEFA Nations League in June.