Netherlands' Rafael van der Vaart out of World Cup with calf injury

Former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rafael van der Vaart has reportedly been ruled out of the Netherlands' World Cup campaign after suffering a calf injury.

The 31-year-old, who now plays for Hamburger SV, picked up the problem during the nation's final training session in Portugal on Tuesday.

According to widespread reports, further medical tests have shown that Van der Vaart will be unable to recover in time to compete in next month's tournament in Brazil.

Van der Vaart was tipped to be included in Louis van Gaal's 23-man squad to compete in his third World Cup following appearances in the 2006 and 2010 campaigns.