Micky van de Ven names one faster Tottenham defender
Micky van de Ven showcased his growing importance for Tottenham in their 2-2 draw with Everton over the weekend.
The 22-year-old centre-back joined from Wolfsburg last summer and returned from a spell on the sidelines last month.
Player. pic.twitter.com/V6Orsk5YEq
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) February 3, 2024
Van de Ven had sustained a hamstring injury during the Lilywhites’ bizarre 4-1 home loss to Chelsea, subsequently forcing him to miss nine Premier League outings.
Since his comeback, Spurs are unbeaten, but Ange Postecoglou’s men have dropped four points, with the latest coming at Goodison Park, much to Van de Ven’s frustration.
“I was just mad, I don’t talk. We had a chance to kill the game at the end but we didn’t do it. It really hurts,” the Dutchman said when asked what he did when he got back to the dressing room.
“Of course with more points we could have put pressure on the top but we didn’t do that so that’s really disappointing – but next week there is another game to fix it.”
His displeasure was understandable. He finished with a 91% pass accuracy (completing 53 out of 58 passes completed) while enjoying a 100% success rate in tackles, including a successful last-man tackle.
Central to Van de Ven’s performance is his electric speed. Last season, he was clocked as the fastest Bundesliga centre-back. And that pace was displayed throughout Saturday’s match on Merseyside, to deny the opposition several times following balls over the top.
In the first half, Van de Ven effortlessly made up ground to get a tackle on Dominic Calvert-Lewin. He did the same following the break after Jack Harrison sprinted clear.
“I don’t want to talk about it!” 😂
Micky van de Ven feels the pressure in the latest episode of Uncut ➡️ https://t.co/WAafPjr5OO @EASPORTSFC | @SpursOfficial pic.twitter.com/l0ywIUNeWg
— Premier League (@premierleague) February 1, 2024
During this season, no player in the Premier League has clocked up a faster top speed than Van de Ven’s 37.38km/h. He’s also topped the best speed from last season, which was clocked by Kyle Walker at 37.31km/h. Chiedozie Ogbene and Pedro Neto complete the top three with top speeds of 36.93km/h and 36.86km/h respectively.
During a recent appearance on the Premier League’s Uncut show on YouTube, Van de Ven was asked to compare his pace with certain players and was quizzed about his FIFA ratings.
When asked if he thought he was faster or slower than Arsenal centre-back William Saliba, he said: “I think he is faster.”
“No, you’re being very humble; you’re faster,” the presenter replied.
He was then asked if he was the fastest player at his club; Van de Ven remained modest and named full-back Destiny Udogie the player with the most pace.
Van de Ven and Udogie are next in action when Spurs host Brighton and Hove Albion on February 10.
