Journalist Paul Brown has revealed that several of Tottenham’s Premier League rivals are now casting ‘envious glances’ at Micky van de Ven following the Dutchman’s impressive start to life in England.
Van de Ven was a relative unknown when he arrived at Spurs, having got his big move on the back of an impressive season for Wolfsburg.
Most Tottenham fans would have expected the 22-year-old to have a steep learning curve in the Premier League, particularly given his lack of experience at the top level, but his transition has been seamless so far.
Van de Ven has shown tremendous composure and technical quality, which has made him a great fit for Ange Postecoglou’s system.
It was reported by TEAMtalk earlier this month that the centre-back was also on Liverpool’s radar this summer and that the Reds had even reached out to the player’s entourage.
However, the Merseysiders were said to be prioritising other signings and when Spurs approached the former Wolfsburg man, he allegedly told his entourage to get the deal completed quickly.
BURNLEY, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 2: Tottenham Hotspur’s Micky van de Ven during the Premier League match between Burnley FC and Tottenham Hotspur at Turf Moor on September 2, 2023 in Burnley, England. (Photo by Rich Linley – CameraSport via Getty Images)
Rivals are jealous of Tottenham’s Micky Van de Ven
Brown has now said that other clubs are now left ruing the fact that they did not take a punt on the talented young defender.
The journalist told GiveMeSport about Van De Ven: “It did take him a couple of weeks to get used to the pace of it, I think, but he’s now up to speed and look so a really good signing.
“He’s slotted in and done very well. I know a lot of people have cast envious glances at him the last couple of weeks and he looks like he’s going from strength to strength.
“I think the thing to say here is that Spurs had a very long list of centre-backs that they were looking at in the summer.
“He was only one of them and I think they made the right call to bring him in ahead of anybody else. Because it’s hard to see any of the other players on their list having quite the impact that he’s made.”
Spurs Web Opinion
While Tottenham’s recruitment team does deserve credit for identifying Van de Ven, I think the majority of credit has to go to Postecoglou for instilling confidence in the youngster and allowing him to play without fear.
I doubt if the likes of Van de Ven and Udogie would have similarly hit the ground running under a coach like Antonio Conte as the players seemed quite burdened by the pressure last season.
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