Fresh insight has emerged regarding Micky Van de Ven’s arrival at Tottenham Hotspur, with Ange Postecoglou opening up on what the Dutchman’s Dad told him.
Tottenham Hotspur fans will always remember Ange Postecoglou’s time in the Spurs dugout fondly as he was the manager who brought an end to the club’s long run without a trophy.
That, in itself, was not enough to keep him in the Tottenham dugout, with results in the Premier League stated as the reason for his sacking.
The former Spurs boss, however, continues to resonate with Tottenham fans. His recent comments about the behind-the-scenes happenings at Spurs struck a chord with fans following the sacking of Thomas Frank.
Ange Postecoglou reveals Micky van de Ven had Liverpool interest
Ange Postecoglou once again returned to The Overlap to speak about his time at Tottenham and his managerial career as a whole.
The Australian spoke about several topics, including Cristian Romero’s leadership and how Van de Ven was signed, revealing details about rival interest and conversations with the defender’s family at the time of the transfer.
Speaking to The Overlap about Micky Van de Ven’s qualities, upbringing and the interest from Liverpool, Postecoglou said: “He [Micky Van de Ven] is top, he can be as good as he was. You watch him at the World Cup, I reckon they will play him left-back and he will be unbelievable once he gets going.
“He is technically good. His ability to cover ground, though, is just phenomenal, mate. You would set him up, a lot of teams like to go man for man now. You would set him up against any striker in the world without any fear that he would get outmuscled and definitely not outrun.
“He has got a top mentality too. I remember when we signed him, because I think Liverpool were in for him at the time as well, and I met his dad.
“I mean, he is not talking out of turn, right? But, like, he was like Secret Service. I remember him saying to me, he goes, ‘Listen, he has got options, but he is coming here to play, you had better play him’.
“So he has had a really good upbringing and he is not going to get carried away. He works hard on his game, and he is aware.”
Postecoglou added on Micky Van de Ven: “He is top mate, he could be as good as anything in terms of you think about the modern game and the physical characteristics are obviously important.
“He has improved his heading, I still think that is an area where aerially he can get stronger, because he is a big lad there. Sometimes his timing is not great, but the rest of his game, very coachable, very coachable.”
Tottenham face transfer risk this summer
While Tottenham pipped Liverpool to Micky van de Ven three summers ago, there is a risk that they could well lose their pacy centre-back this summer.
This is because van de Ven is attracting interest from several clubs across Europe, including Liverpool, whose interest in him has rekindled, as they view him as the long-term heir to Virgil van Dijk.
Spurs, on the other hand, have been looking to hand the Dutchman a new contract, according to reports from earlier this season, but no success has been found in those attempts.
- READ MORE: Tottenham’s own Roy Keane: Postecoglou says Spurs stars ‘fear’ and ‘respect’ Cristian Romero