Tottenham Hotspur are under enormous pressure to get back to winning ways this weekend, after yet another miserable night. On Wednesday, Spurs were beaten 3-2 at Dean Court, with Bournemouth's winner coming in the 95th minute, no less. That made it just two wins in 12 Premier League outings for the under-fire Thomas Frank, with the Lilywhites languishing in 14th.
Up next, Spurs face two of the bottom three, namely West Ham and Burnley. Those should be a pair of routine wins, but the curse of Dr Tottenham could easily strike once or even twice more. Before that, they host Aston Villa in the FA Cup on Saturday evening, with a major fan protest set to take place.
Defeat in the FA Cup would really crank up the pressure on Frank, facing the reality that Spurs are only three points better off in the Premier League than after 21 matches compared to last season, when, of course, Ange Postecoglou's team went on to finish 17th.
Seemingly set to miss out on the Champions League places, having finished in the top four in only one of the previous six seasons, there are serious question marks about the club's direction. So, could Spurs' prize assets be tempted with a move away, with fears growing that, arguably, their best player could push for a departure?
Micky van de Ven new contract latest
As reported by Matt Law of the Telegraph, Tottenham are eager for Micky van de Ven to sign a new contract. However, it is believed that the Dutch defender is "frustrated with the current situation at the club", so he is hesitant to do so. The 24 -year-old's current contract does not expire until 2029, meaning this is far from an urgent situation, but could be the start of a worrying trend.
This news comes after van de Ven had a rather eventful evening by the South Coast this week. The centre-back had seemingly won a penalty against Bournemouth, following a trademark burst from the back, only to be correctly booked for simulation by referee Darren England following VAR review. After the match, van de Ven then had a heated argument with a Spurs supporter in the away section, a quite surreal sight while Freed From Desire was blaring through the stadium's speakers.
That aside, van de Ven is clearly one of Tottenham's best players, widely-regarded among the best central defenders in the Premier League. Thus, with Spurs unlikely to be in next season's Champions League, potentially missing out on Europe altogether, he could depart, given that many of Europe's biggest clubs would surely be vying for his signature.