Tottenham Hotspur have delivered the most emphatic transfer hands-off of the season. Despite Liverpool preparing a move for Micky van de Ven next year, Spurs have “no plans” to sell their new captain — setting up a £90m saga that could define the 2027 summer window. Here is the tactical truth about the Van Dijk heir, how he transforms Andoni Iraola’s 4-2-3-1, and the five obstacles standing between Liverpool and their dream signing.
The £90m bombshell: what was actually reported
Let us be precise about what is known, because transfer season loves a good exaggeration. BBC Sport’s Sunday gossip column, published 3 October 2026, carried the item verbatim: “Tottenham have no plans to sell defender Micky van de Ven, 25, as Liverpool prepare to move for the Netherlands international next year. (Football Insider)”
The story comes from Football Insider’s Pete O’Rourke on the Transfer Insider podcast, and his quotes leave no room for misinterpretation. “Tottenham are quite relaxed about this,” O’Rourke said. “They tied down Van de Ven to a new contract in August until 2031. So look, Tottenham hold all the aces here, he’s been made club captain as well, so I can’t imagine they’ll be too keen to lose such a key player.”
He doubled down: “Tottenham won’t be entertaining a sale anytime soon. Top players will always attract interest and have suitors, but he’s under a long-term contract at Tottenham and they’re planning for life with Micky van de Ven.”
The Liverpool interest itself first emerged a couple of weeks ago, when it was reported the Reds had identified Van de Ven as their top target to eventually succeed Virgil van Dijk. And the price being whispered in the industry is eye-watering: sources believe the Dutchman could move for a figure in the £80m-£90m range — a fee that would surpass Harry Maguire as the most expensive defender in world football history.
Why Iraola has made the Dutchman his Van Dijk heir
To understand why Liverpool are going to these lengths, you have to understand the ticking clock at Anfield. Virgil van Dijk is out of contract next summer and turns 36 around the same time. He remains one of the best centre-halves in world football, but his minutes are being managed more carefully this season — and he is the highest earner at the club by some margin, so any new deal would be a delicate negotiation.
Andoni Iraola has made defence his obsession since arriving. Liverpool have kept three consecutive clean sheets in the top flight, and the improvement at the back is no coincidence: Iraola has focused much of his time on the defensive structure. But there are genuine concerns about depth over the coming weeks and months, and the club already have one eye on the future. Jeremy Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni have impressed, but Liverpool would likely need another centre-back of genuine top-end quality if — or when — Van Dijk moves on.
Enter Van de Ven. Left-footed, 25 years old, a Netherlands international, and quite simply one of the fastest defenders on the planet. Liverpool have been here before with Dutch centre-backs, and the profile fit is almost suspiciously perfect. As covered in our tactical breakdown of the Kaoru Mitoma transfer battle, the Reds are not afraid of going head-to-head with Spurs for a signature — but this time the north London club are digging in.
Liverpool’s centre-back shortlist is not a one-man list, either. BBC Sport’s Monday gossip, published 4 October 2026, revealed the Reds and Chelsea have also joined the race for Nottingham Forest’s Murillo — though the Brazilian will not be allowed to leave the City Ground in January. That tells you everything about Iraola’s thinking: this is a planned, multi-target succession strategy, and Van de Ven sits at the very top of it.
How Van de Ven slots into the 4-2-3-1: the tactical fit
This is where the story gets genuinely exciting for Liverpool fans, because Van de Ven is not just a good defender — he is a stylistic clone of what made Van Dijk great, with an even more devastating athletic ceiling.
The headline trait is recovery pace. Van de Ven has operated primarily at centre-back this season in Roberto De Zerbi’s high line, where his ability to defend the space behind the defence makes him uniquely valuable. Iraola’s Liverpool also defend on the front foot, squeezing the pitch and asking their centre-backs to win footraces against through balls. There is arguably no better insurance policy in world football for a high defensive line than a 25-year-old who eats up 40-metre sprints for breakfast.
Then there is the left-side balance. Van de Ven is left-footed and has played the left centre-back role for Spurs, the exact slot Van Dijk occupies in Iraola’s 4-2-3-1. His versatility — he has demonstrated he can fill in at left-back when required — gives Iraola the kind of tactical flexibility that wins titles: the option to morph into a back three in possession or cover for an overlapping full-back without a substitution.
His ball-carrying is the underrated weapon. Van de Ven strides out of defence with the ball in a way that breaks opposition pressing structures — a trait Iraola prizes as Liverpool look to progress play through the thirds rather than around them. Pair that with a midfield that already includes progressive passers, and you get a team that can attack from the edge of its own box.
The honest caveats? He is not yet the finished article. Analysts note he is not particularly adept at playing out from the back under pressure, and his greatest strength — that searing pace — can tempt him into overcommitting, leaving space in behind when the recovery run goes wrong. And the uncomfortable stat: he was part of a Spurs defence that finished 17th in both 2024-25 and 2025-26. Individual brilliance does not always survive collective dysfunction — although he has kept two clean sheets in his four league starts this season, which suggests the player is outperforming the team.
The five obstacles between Liverpool and the deal
What Spurs’ refusal means for De Zerbi’s rebuild
There is a delicious irony at the heart of this story. Tottenham are rock bottom of the Premier League — two points from five games, eight goals conceded — and yet they are behaving like a superclub in the transfer market. That is not arrogance; it is strategy.
De Zerbi’s entire project is built around a young, athletic core, and Van de Ven is its cornerstone. As covered in our tactical breakdown of the £100m Tonali gamble, Spurs spent a club-record fee to make the Italian the midfield leader — and the captain’s armband for Van de Ven completes the spine of the rebuild. Selling either would be pulling the foundations out from under the manager.
The ‘El Sackico’ showdown with Manchester United on October 10 — see our predicted lineups and five decisive gambles — will be the next test of whether this young spine can actually keep the ball out of the net. If Van de Ven marshals a clean sheet against United’s attack, his £90m valuation starts to look like a bargain.
Our verdict: the saga that will define 2027
Here is our read. Liverpool’s interest is genuine and long-term — you do not get “preparing a move for next year” briefed via Football Insider without real intent. Iraola wants the Van Dijk succession sorted, and Van de Ven is the stylistic heir: left-footed, rapid, high-line proven, and Premier League battle-tested.
But Tottenham hold every card: the 2031 contract, the captaincy, the public refusal, and a manager who staked his authority on this player. Our prediction: Liverpool will test the water with an enquiry next summer, Spurs will point at the contract and laugh, and the saga will rumble until one of two things happens — Van Dijk extends at Anfield, killing the urgency, or Liverpool decide £90m for a defender is the price of staying elite.
Either way, this is the transfer story to watch. The fastest defender in the league, the biggest succession plan in English football, and a club that has finally learned how to say no. Strap in.