Micky van de Ven, Tottenham Hotspur centre-back, has been seen playing both as a centre-back and left-back for his club and country over the past year. However, he recently revealed his favourite position on the field.
van de Ven enters the international break following a challenging display against Brighton in the Premier League. The entire left side of Tottenham’s defence had an arduous day at Amex Stadium. Despite leading 2-0 at half-time after an impressive first 45 minutes, Spurs' defence crumbled under 18 minutes of intense pressure from Brighton.
Known for his unbeatable speed while retreating, van de Ven's one-on-one defending was found wanting in the second half against Brighton.
Centre-Back or Left-Back?
Van de Ven made a name for himself in Bundesliga matches as a central defender for Wolfsburg but has also shown versatility by drifting out to play as left-back when required. Spurs deployed him as a left-back towards last season's end when Destiny Udogie was injured. He also played this position numerous times representing Netherlands at Euro 2024.
However, it seems that van de Ven prefers his primary role as centre-half above all else. In an interview this week he stated:
Micky van de Ven, Tottenham Hotspur player, said:
“I can play in both positions. You can fill in for yourself. I prefer to play the central defender. But that’s logical when you look at the games I played for Tottenham and Wolfsburg. Nathan is injured and Jurrien is injured. I can also play the left back, so that’s not a problem.”
The Dutch defensive line-up
The Netherlands squad boasts an array of talent in their central defensive line-up including Virgil Van Dijk, Matthijs De Ligt, Stefan De Vrij, Nathan Ake and Jurrian Timber among others.
Despite this wealth of options though, van de Ven has rarely been chosen to partner with Virgil Van Dijk in central defence - even though many see them as potentially forming an ideal partnership due to their complementary skills and styles of play. The Spurs star has now opened up on this prospect.
Micky van de Ven added:
“I’ll let the coach decide if he wants to do that. We’ll have to see. Virgil is a fantastic defender, so I wouldn’t mind playing alongside him.”
Micky van de Ven's versatility and ability to adapt to different positions on the field have been key assets for both his club and country. However, it seems that he feels most at home in the centre-back position. As he continues his career, it will be interesting to see how his preferred role impacts team strategies and formations moving forward.
