The 31-year-old frontman is still on Burnley’s books, but is currently on loan in Germany at Hoffenheim.
Even though Weghorst is yet to make a big impact for Hoffenheim, he has been a regular member of the Dutch international team.
Weghorst scored the Netherlands’ only goal in their 1-0 win against Ireland on Saturday in a Euro 2024 qualifier and appeared to put his finger over his lips briefly as he celebrated.
There have been calls for Luuk de Jong to come back into the team and questions raised over whether Weghorst is good enough – and Van der Vaart sympathises with the frustration his countryman must feel.
“You could already see his irritation there. Everyone is calling for Luuk de Jong to come back, there are doubts about his qualities.
“You can see he has to fight against something he feels he cannot win”, Van der Vaart said on NOS’ Studio Voetbal programme when discussing Weghorst.
“The minutes he plays, he just plays well.
“We have also always said he is a player who makes the most of his career.
“I have a lot of respect for that.
“But he should not start believing he is the best striker the Netherlands has ever had, because that is clearly not the case.”
Burnley are struggling to score goals in the Premier League this season, with just nine goals in 12 games, and it remains to be seen if they might think about bringing Weghorst back in January.
