Micky van de Ven on path to becoming the world's most overpowered player

FROM TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR STADIUM — The left-footed centre-back is treated like an ultra-rare trading card in the footballing world.

Clubs desperately search far and wide to find one capable of bringing balance and an equilibrium to their backline. Sure, there are plenty of decent right-footed centre-backs out there — just like there are flair midfielders who need a tough-tackling partner in order to be 'unlocked', or right-footed left-wingers who average around six or seven goals a season, or fans in stadiums with obnoxious signs asking for a player's shirt — but potentially elite lefties are tougher to find.

Tottenham struck gold last summer with the signing of Micky van de Ven from Wolfsburg, bringing him in at the end of a month-long saga in which they were also in negotiations for Bayer Leverkusen's Edmond Tapsoba (who is, notably, right-footed).

The need for Spurs to bring in a defender was pretty evident after a 2022/23 season in which they conceded 63 Premier League goals and their marquee centre-back signing the previous summer had been Clement Lenglet on loan.

During his relatively short time in north London so far, Van de Ven has proved an almost perfect signing. In his 20 Premier League games, Tottenham have lost only twice — and one was that ludicrous 4-1 defeat to Chelsea in which he was substituted early on with a hamstring injury.

Micky van de Ven