Andre Villas-Boas "counting on" Rafael van der Vaart

New Tottenham Hotspur manager Andre Villas-Boas has revealed that he is "counting on" Rafael van der Vaart for the new season.

The Dutch international's future at White Hart Lane has been the subject of speculation in recent days, with Hamburg and the UAE both mooted as possible destinations.

Villas-Boas has now placed his faith in the midfielder for the new season, although he admitted that Luka Modric's transfer situation is likely to 'drag on'.

"With Van der Vaart, at the moment I am absolutely counting on him," the Portuguese coach told The Sunday Telegraph.

"It's a totally different situation from Luka, who has been chased by different clubs in the past two seasons and is continuing to drag interest."

Van der Vaart joined Spurs from Real Madrid in 2010 for around £8m.