Ange Postecoglou has shared why he is particularly excited about Micky van de Ven after the defender scored the winner for Tottenham Hotspur against Burnley on Saturday.
Spurs kept their slim top-four hopes alive with a 2-1 victory over a Burnley side who had to throw everything at securing a win to avoid relegation to the Championship.
Ultimately, Tottenham did get the win, and the decisive goal came from an unlikely source, with Micky van de Ven scoring a brilliant goal late in the second-half.
Van de Ven has been one of the finds of the season in his first year with Tottenham, and he showed that he could have another string to his bow, with the Dutchman filling in at left-back as the game went on.
Ange Postecoglou lauds Micky van de Ven after Tottenham win
He has been a revelation and is so important to how Tottenham want to play, with van de Ven able to use his pace to compete with anyone in the Premier League.
And speaking to BBC Sport after the win, Ange Postecoglou suggested that he is so optimistic that there is so much more to come from van de Ven in the coming years.
“He’s not a bad player is he? He’s outstanding and that’s the exciting thing for me – it is his first year in Premier League football,” he said.
“Same with Destiny [Udogie], Pape Sarr and [Guglielmo] Vicario, too. We have so much growth in this team and Micky is at the forefront of that.
“I can’t think of too many players who have made such an impact in their first year of Premier League football, and knowing he only really had one year in the Bundesliga. It’s not like he’s a seasoned professional.
“He has had a few injury problems but when he’s played he has been outstanding.”
Future looks very, very bright at Spurs
Not only is van de Ven in his first year at Tottenham, but he has also only just turned 23, so that would suggest that he could improve considerably in the next few years.
His partnership with Cristian Romero should go from strength to strength, particularly as Tottenham’s midfield potentially gets stronger.
As Postecoglou notes, Spurs have so many talented youngsters within their ranks. Heung-min Son, at 31, was four years older than any of his teammates who started against the Clarets on Saturday.
Van de Ven is perhaps the most exciting prospect of the lot right now.