Postecoglou is convinced there is ‘so much more to come from’ from 22-year-old Spurs star
Ange Postecoglou believes that we have not seen the best of Micky van de Ven yet, insisting that the centre-back will only get better as he gets more experience under his belt.
Van de Ven was a relative unknown when he arrived at Tottenham last summer, with the North London club securing the Dutchman after his breakthrough season at Wolfsburg.
The jury was very much out at the time on whether he was good enough for the Premier League, but from the second he set foot on the pitch, the 22-year-old has oozed class, showing the composure and judgement of someone ten years his senior.
The blistering pace that the Netherlands international possesses has proved a huge asset to the Lilywhites, enabling them to play quite a high defensive line, knowing that the centre-back has the recovery speed to chase down any attacker who beats the offside trap.
In fact, last week, it emerged that Van de Ven had been recorded at 37.38 km/h, thus overtaking Kyle Walker as the fastest player in Premier League history since they started recording the stat (Sky Sports).
Postecoglou is so pleased with Micky Van de Ven so far
When asked about the former Wolfsburg man clinching that record, Postecoglou told Football.London: “We kind of knew what we were getting from Micky from a physical perspective. There is plenty of evidence that showed what we have already seen that his speed and ability to recover was elite, for sure, but then it’s not just about running fast.
“Football is more than that, it’s more than just speed. You have to use that in the right way and I have been really impressed by how he’s adapted to Premier League football.
“He’s up against top strikers every week and his ability to use that speed in such an effective way in terms of his defensive work, I think has been outstanding for such a young man in his first year.
“Don’t forget before he came to us he’d only had one year in the Bundesliga, so there is so much more to come from him but I have been really pleased with just the way he has gone up to this level and used what he has as his strengths.”
Spurs Web Opinion
While Van de Ven’s physical and technical qualities are unreal, what is perhaps the most impressive characteristic about him is the mature head he has on his shoulders. His judgement regarding when to tackle and when to dribble out from the defence will improve as he gets more experience under his belt.
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