Gareth Bale helped Tottenham come back against Arsenal and Rafael van der Vaart credits Harry Redknapp's powerful speech
Former Tottenham star Rafael van der Vaart has revealed how Harry Redknapp's three-word speech inspired a famous comeback in the north London derby.
Van der Vaart was instrumental in an incredible comeback against their bitter rivals and claimed their first ever win at the Emirates Stadium.
The win had added significance as three points for the Gunners would have seen them leapfrog the Reds. Chelsea and Manchester United to first place.
Spurs had not won at Arsenal for 17 years and a disastrous start to the game saw Redknapp's men fall to a 2-0 deficit at the interval thanks to goals from Samir Nasri and Marouane Chamakh.
With Spurs on the ropes and fans fearing an embarrassing result, Redknapp took a measured approach in his team speech, much to the surprise of the Dutch maestro.
Van der Vaart highlighted the famous victory in November 2010 and Redknapp's composure at half-time.
“Of course, I remember the first win after so many years at the Emirates,” he told SunSport.
“We were losing 2-0. It was a terrible game. We were in very, very bad shape, and I was also in very bad shape.
“We went into the locker room and I thought Harry was going to kill us. And he just said, 'Let it out.' I think it was, 'Let it out.' And that was it.”
Redknapp's simple message clearly worked wonders for the former Ajax man, who created Gareth Bale to reduce the deficit five minutes into the second half before equalizing the scores from the penalty spot in the 67th minute.
And it was Van der Vaart's free-kick inside the box that made the difference, with Younes Kaboul heading in what proved to be the winner five minutes from time.
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The turnaround was complete, but Van der Vaart says it would never have happened if it weren't for Redknapp's speech before the second half.
“We came on, I scored the penalty, gave an assist and, in the last minute, another assist. And we won that game.”
“After the game we went into town and all the people asked us: 'What did Harry say at half-time?' And they all said: 'What a great speech.'
“And we really felt what we had to do. I think it was amazing what he did there.”
It remains the last time Tottenham managed to win at Arsenal, but also a stark reminder that form counts for little in the north London derby.
The two teams will meet again in the North London derby this Sunday.
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