Ange Postecoglou gives hopeful Micky van de Ven Tottenham return game after latest injury blow

Ange Postecoglou has offered his verdict on the comments made by Tottenham's Micky van de Ven on when he hopes to return from injury. The Netherlands international is coming up to being out of action for the last two months after suffering a hamstring issue in the London derby defeat to Chelsea.

Fellow summer signing James Maddison also picked up an ankle problem in the game with it expected both would return sometime in the new year. Without wanting to put pressure on the duo, when asked for an update ahead of the Everton game, Postecoglou was reluctant to offer an exact timeline over a potential return.

However, van de Ven did not appear to get the memo as the 22-year-old revealed his seemingly planned training return date. On Friday, December 22 van de Ven took part in a nine-dart challenge on day 8 of the PDC World Darts Championships at Alexandra Palace where he revealed he would be back in just two weeks, as per The Sun journalist Rob Maul.

With that a considerably hopeful update, Postecoglou was asked about van de Ven just a week after admitting he was nowhere near a first-team training return. «Where did he say that? Ah the darts,» Postecoglou said in response to van de Ven's public comments. «I've said before I wouldn't be taking players' views on their recovery process. He's getting closer, we'll see him sometime in January. I don't think Burnley but Man United on the 14th I think potentially.

»But again, I don't ok at comeback dates until I see them training with us and he's not part of the group. He's not due to be part of the group this week, we'll see how he's going by the end of the week. Once they start training with the group we'll think about when they'll be available. He's at the tail end of it for sure