After Tottenham Hotspur stayed up by the skin of their teeth, Micky van de Ven has seemingly sent a big hint about his summer plans.
The last few weeks have been extremely draining for everyone associated with Spurs, who came perilously close to going down for the first time in nearly five decades.
Many big personalities in the Tottenham squad stepped up over the last few weeks to ensure that the club avoided disaster.
Prime among those was Micky van de Ven, who was imperious at the back since the arrival of Roberto De Zerbi, while also filling the leadership void left by Cristian Romero’s injury.
Micky van de Ven is confident Tottenham will be better next season
While there has been plenty of speculation over the centre-back’s future this season, it has been claimed over recent weeks that Van de Ven is loving life under De Zerbi and is open to signing a new contract.
The 25-year-old has now sent a big hint that he is staying at Tottenham by talking about what he expects to happen next season under his new head coach.
When asked if he is confident Spurs will improve next season, Van de Ven responded (via The Metro): “Really confident. I think we have the right people now here. The right manager. So yeah, I’m confident we can do more next year because obviously, as you said, two years in a row we end up 17th, it was unacceptable, especially for a club like Spurs.
“Things are going to need to change and we’re going to see that’s going to happen. But we’re going to do everything about it and I’m confident we’re going to do way better than the last two seasons.”
Van de Ven showers praise on ‘unbelievable’ Roberto De Zerbi
The new Tottenham boss has made it clear he is a big fan of Van de Ven, with De Zerbi describing the Dutchman as the best left centre-back in the Premier League.
It appears that the appreciation is mutual, with the Netherlands international admitting that the Italian has transformed his confidence since arriving through the door.
Van de Ven told Spurs Play (via The Metro): “The gaffer has been unbelievable, I’m not going to lie, since he stepped in. I spoke a lot with him because he also saw I was not in the best mood at the training ground.
“He spoke a lot to me and said, ‘you’re going to be a really important player for me, I need to rely on you, I trust you, I’ve seen you play, even when I was at Brighton and Marseille, you’re a top player and I’m going to need you’.
“I think he did it with multiple players and he gave us so much confidence. I think that’s really important, especially when we were in the difficult situation we were in. But luckily we’ve come through it, I’m really proud of the boys, I’m thankful for the staff who came in and I’m really happy.”