Former Manchester United coach Rene Meulensteen has suggested the Red Devils should consider an attempt to sign Micky van de Ven from Tottenham Hotspur rather than Bayern Munich’s Matthijs de Ligt.
Manchester United are on the hunt for a central defender
There is plenty of excitement at Tottenham about van de Ven’s potential, with the Dutchman winning many admirers in his debut Premier League season following his switch from Wolfsburg 12 months ago.
Ange Postecoglou is certainly convinced that the 23-year-old can evolve into one of the best in the world, telling Spurs’ official website earlier this year that the defender has ‘no ceiling’.
Apart from his technical quality, raw pace and composure, Van de Ven has also showcased his versatility, having primarily operated as a left-back for the Netherlands at the Euros.
Meulensteen, who served as Sir Alex Ferguson’s assistant at Old Trafford, has urged Erik ten Hag’s men to look beyond De Ligt and spend big on the Tottenham defender this summer.
Micky van de Ven had an impressive first season at Tottenham
Referring to United’s rumoured interest in the Bayern centre-back, the 60-year-old told Free Bets (as relayed by The Metro): “They [United] do need another centre half, but it surprises me it’s a right-footed one.
“I’ve been very impressed with Micky Van de Ven for Tottenham Hotspur, he’s a left-footed player and very quick.
“I’m not saying it wouldn’t cost you a lot of money and dealing with Tottenham is difficult.”
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If even Man Utd are somehow able to convince Levy to sell Van de Ven (which we know is impossible), there is no reason for the Dutchman to agree to the move.
Ange Postecoglou’s project at Spurs seems far more exciting at the moment than that of ten Hag’s at Unite.
Tottenham Hotspur had to invest in a left-sided centre back last summer and appear to have struck gold with Micky van de Ven.
Left-footed centre backs have become immensely popular in the modern game.
Managers didn’t really seem to care all that much if their two centre backs were both right-footed but those days appear to be gone.
Almost every Premier League club has a left-footed centre back now; Josko Gvardiol, Nathan Ake, Gabriel Magalhaes, Lisandro Martinez, Pau Torres, Sven Botman, Levi Colwill… the list just goes on and on.
Tottenham have been seeking a left-footed centre back signing for a while now and the 2022 arrival of Clement Lenglet didn’t solve the problem.
Spurs simply had to invest in a long-term solution in that role and after links to the likes of Gvardiol, Torres and even Alessandro Bastoni, Tottenham found their man.
Liverpool star hails Tottenham Hotspur’s Micky van de Ven
Van de Ven showed potential in the Bundesliga but wasn’t considered to be in the upper tier of Bundesliga centre backs when Tottenham signed him.
Spurs invested in potential though – and right now, that decision looks to be an incredible one.
Van de Ven was outstanding in the Premier League last season and established himself as a centre back few strikers want to face moving forward.
That hasn’t resulted in starts at Euro 2024 though with Netherlands boss Ronald Koeman mostly using him as a substitute.
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