Micky van de Ven is proving to be a real crowd favourite following his summer transfer to Tottenham Hotspur.
As a defensive player, playing in Ange Postecoglou’s system can be daunting because you have to defend so much open space.
But when you have the pace of Tottenham’s flying Dutchman, then you will back yourself to come up against whoever you want and in whatever situation.
Darren Bent feels Micky van de Ven has been ‘absolutely outstanding’ since making his summer move, as he told Premier League Productions (11/03/24 at 2:50 pm).
But his worry is the 22-year-old picking up what looked like another hamstring injury during the 4-0 win over Aston Villa on Sunday.
Early in the second half, before Tottenham went on their blitz, their star centre-back went down injured and was replaced by Radu Dragusin.
That’s the second time this season Micky van de Ven has suffered a muscle issue, on the previous occasion he was on the sidelines for a while.
Ange Postecoglou, the Spurs fans and players will be hoping this is just a minor scare, and at best, he is back and raring to go after the international break.
Micky van de Ven at Tottenham
“That pace he has got, we saw times when Aston Villa were getting in behind and he was clawing it back, and Ollie Watkins is quick,” said Bent.
“The fact that they have lost him now to another hamstring injury, you just hope it’s not bad because he has been absolutely outstanding since he went to Tottenham.”
Micky van de Ven is Tottenham’s key defender
Yes, Cristian Romero has the World Cup winners medal around his neck, but as he has proved this season, he can still be a loose cannon and costly to his team.
The Argentine star needs van de Ven next to him more than the Dutchman needs him.
Van de Ven is that calming influence at the back and that helps Tottenham, especially when they push so many bodies forward.
In truth, even if he is on the sidelines longer than first imagined, the performance of Dragusin should be very encouraging because he didn’t look out of place at Villa Park.
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