Sky Sports reporter Lyall Thomas has revealed that Tottenham Hotspur signed Micky van de Ven as a player for the future but the centre-back has surprised those at the club by how quickly he has taken to the Premier League.
Van de Ven has hardly put a foot wrong since arriving at Spurs and his partnership with Crisitan Romero seems to have the makings of a top-class one, with the pair complementing each other well.
The 22-year-old has been part of a water-tight defensive unit, which has conceded just two goals and kept two clean sheets in the first three Premier League games of the season, which is especially impressive considering the kind of high-risk, attacking football that Postecoglou’s men have played.
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Journalist Ben Jacobs suggested on GiveMeSport that the impressive start Van de Ven and Romero have made has left Spurs with a dilemma as the club now have to decide whether it would be worth spending big on another centre-back instead of just signing a backup defender.
Spurs did not plan for instant Van de Ven success
Thomas has now asserted that the Lilywhites did not plan for the former Wolfsburg man to be an immediate starter when they bought him.
He told the Last Word on Spus podcast: “If you look at the players who have come into the team straight away and how they’ve performed, I mean again it’s been part of the impressive start.
“I mean [Micky] Van de Ven in particular, at 22, he’s come in and taken to the level immediately. I know that Tottenham’s intention with him was to bring him in to develop as a development player really, someone to bring in and not necessarily play straight away.
“But he’s been thrown in there and he looks like he’s been playing in the Premier League for a couple of seasons I think. He reads the game really well, he’s obviously rapid, he’s obviously really quick and he looks like he’s absolutely loving it straight away. That’s a huge plus for Tottenham.”
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I do not think Tottenham would have paid £43m for Van de Ven if they did not think he is good enough to slot into the backline straightaway.
Most people would have expected the 22-year-old to take a few months or perhaps even an entire season to get fully adjusted to the pace and intensity of the Premier League, given his lack of experience.
However, the Netherlands Under-21 international has showcased the sort of maturity and temperament you would expect from someone who is in the latter stage of his career.
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