If Tottenham Hotspur face relegation this season then Liverpool could take advantage and swoop for this one player
Should Tottenham Hotspur suffer relegation this season, Liverpool must make a play for Dutch defender Micky van de Ven. Spurs are currently languishing in the drop zone, two points adrift of West Ham in 17th, following a catastrophic campaign.
After Igor Tudor's rotten spell and subsequent dismissal, Roberto De Zerbi has been handed the responsibility of keeping Spurs in the top flight. The Italian will also need to persuade the club's star players that their futures lie at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
While not to the same extent, Arne Slot's side have also endured difficulties this season, with an unreliable and injury-ravaged backline contributing to their troubles. A deal has already been struck for Jeremy Jacquet to arrive from Rennes ahead of the 2026/27 campaign, but further defensive additions remain necessary.
Ibrahima Konate's uncertain future is a worry, Joe Gomez could depart this summer, while Virgil van Dijk will be 35 by the start of next season. Van de Ven, who has been strongly linked with the Reds, is contracted to Spurs until 2029.
According to talkSPORT, the club have placed a £100 million valuation on the defender. Yet should De Zerbi's squad drop into the Championship, the 25-year-old would undoubtedly be available for a bargain price.
Is the Spurs star worth investing in? Opinion remains divided following Van de Ven's patchy campaign with Spurs. But former Liverpool midfielder Didi Hamann believes Liverpool require a player with Van de Ven's speed.
He said: "We know in football how important pace is going forward... I think Micky van de Ven is one of the quickest, if not the quickest, in the Premier League. So, yeah, he'd certainly be one who's on the radar."
Ex-Spurs manager Tim Sherwood also reckons it's the sensible decision for everyone involved. "Micky van de Ven is the obvious choice for Liverpool this summer in that left centre-back position," he said.
Concerns exist, though. Former Liverpool player Dean Saunders has raised questions over whether Van de Ven has the footballing intelligence required to succeed at Anfield. Previous Liverpool defender Glen Johnson has similarly expressed reservations about Van de Ven's fit for the Reds.
"When speaking about Micky van de Ven, he is lightning quick, but I have played against defenders like him," Saunders told aceodds.com. "I have played against the quickest centre-backs in the world, but it was never a problem for me. Being a top defender is all about your brain.
"It doesn't matter being quick if you don't have the brain. It helps you recover from mistakes, but you shouldn't make those mistakes to start. I am just not sure if Van de Ven's football brain is that good and if he can read the game. At this level, everything is about speed of thought."
Van de Ven is, remarkably and officially, the quickest player in Premier League history, recording a top speed of 37.38 against Brentford in January 2024. While he has found things difficult this season, it would be challenging to identify a Spurs player who hasn't.
The Dutch international wins 53.62 per cent of his aerial duels, while his passing accuracy sits at an impressive 89 per cent, suggesting there would be plenty for Slot to develop.
His seven goals across all competitions this season is one more than Liverpool's highest-scoring defender Virgil Van Dijk, and the Spurs centre-half would provide the advantage of having a left-footed central defender in the squad.
Van de Ven himself also appears to be keen on his potential suitors. Speaking in June 2023, shortly before his £43m transfer to Spurs, he told Voetbal International: "It's true that the director (then Liverpool sporting director Jorg Schmadtke, previously worked for Wolfsburg) went there and I know that Liverpool followed me before. But at the moment, I don't know anything. Do I think Liverpool is a nice club? Naturally."