Tottenham Hotspur and Wolfsburg are close to agreeing a deal for super-talented defender Micky van de Ven’s move to London.
According to Fabrizio Romano, negotiations have entered the ‘final stages,’ with only the last details missing before the official announcement.
Van de Ven has already defined a verbal agreement with Tottenham over personal terms, accepting to commit to a five-year contract in the capital.
Despite convincing the prodigious defender, Spurs have largely struggled to get Wolfsburg’s go-ahead, with the Germans holding out for their £30 million asking price.
They shelled out only £3.15m to acquire the Dutchman’s services from then-Dutch second-tier side Volendam in 2021 before turning him into one of Europe’s hottest prospects.
The 22-year-old had a fantastic breakout season at the Volkswagen Arena in 2022/23, bagging a goal and two assists in 33 Bundesliga appearances for Die Wolfe.
Known for his blistering speed and impressive technical ability, Van de Ven should seamlessly fit into Ange Postecoglou’s possession-based approach.
Postecoglou insists on building from the back, meaning he needs technically-gifted centre-backs to put his ideas in motion, and the Dutch prodigy fits the bill.
With all due respect to Japhet Tanganga and Davinson Sanchez, their skills on the ball don’t meet the ex-Celtic manager’s requirements, not to mention the latter is set for a summer departure.
Russian heavyweights Spartak Moscow are on the verge of signing the 27-year-old Colombian, who has flopped in the Premier League upon a then-club record £42m arrival from Ajax in 2017.
Eric Dier boasts decent technique for a defender, having spent a large chunk of his career playing as a defensive midfielder, but his proneness to errors is an issue.
It leaves Cristian Romero as the only rock-solid option at the back, even though the Argentine also had ups and downs during Spurs’ disastrous 2022/23 Premier League campaign.
On that basis, it’s no surprise that Tottenham are desperate to sign van de Ven.
