So… did anyone else notice that giant, gaping, Micky van de Ven-shaped hole in Tottenham’s defence last weekend? That was pretty concerning.
His impact on this Spurs team is now unquestionably clear, as while they managed to see off Aston Villa without him, the walls came crumbling down at Craven Cottage as Fulham put three past them.
Mentally, it took Spurs fans kicking and screaming back to a place they’d been just before Christmas, when his first hamstring injury of the season forced him to miss nine consecutive games. Their record during that period wasn’t particularly strong, failing to win more than half of those matches.
He’s now on his second hamstring injury, although, thankfully, Ange Postecoglu has suggested it is nowhere near as serious. The final international break of the campaign has come at a merciful time in that respect, allowing Van de Ven two extra weeks to find fitness.
The first game back, Luton Town at home, is perhaps not one to rush back for, but when Spurs travel to West Ham three days later he needs to be there. If not, fans might well be worried their dependence on the Dutchman will be laid bare once again.
The statistics make for gruesome reading: Spurs’ win rate this season drops from 66.7% to 40% when he’s not in the team. They’ve only lost two of the 18 matches he’s started this season - and one was the Chelsea game in which he initially hurt his hamstring, leading to that late nine-man collapse.
Not only do Tottenham concede fewer goals per game with him in the team, they score more too; he is one of those players that stabilises everything on the pitch for a team, not just one area, and provides a general platform for success. Virgil van Dijk and Lisandro Martinez offer the same quality for their respective clubs, which is representative of how, in the modern game, centre-backs can be more influential than ever.
Some context must be applied here. The nine-game chunk Van de Ven missed, where the win rate really dropped, was also missed by a host of other key players, like James Maddison, Cristian Romero and Yves Bissouma. His absence was keenly felt, but it wasn’t all about him.
The Fulham game, though… that was about him; rarely has a game so brutally demonstrated how important a player is to a team.
Spurs play expansive possession football and leave gaps in the process, leaving them susceptible to transition attacks. It’s the sacrifice Postecoglu makes in the hunt for goals, and while it’s nowhere near as concerning as some of the setups Erik ten Hag rolls out at Manchester United, it is fair to say Spurs throw caution to the wind, engaging in some basketball-style games at times.
In order to survive those spectacles, you need centre-backs who can cover vast distances and perform minor defensive heroics on a weekly basis. Van de Ven’s combination of outrageous speed and reading of the game is irreplaceable within the Spurs ranks - not by Radu Dragusin (for now at least) and not even by Romero.
The concern is now that Van de Ven, at age 22, is irreplaceable in Spurs’ setup - but also a touch fragile, having now sustained three notable hamstring injuries (one back at Wolfsburg) in a young career to date.
We know very well that Postecoglu won’t compromise on his vision and principles - he’s made that abundantly clear, mate - which means Van de Ven present or not, Spurs will be open, expansive and leave gaps to exploit.
That may leave Technical Director Johan Lange with the unenviable task of unearthing another Van de Ven-like figure this summer in the transfer window, which is much, much, much easier said than done.
