Just think that with Contes back 3 how good Romero…Tapsoba…Brief Athletic write-up on Mickey from the U21 Euros:
Defender (Wolfsburg/Netherlands), 22
Supposedly, if Josko Gvardiol leaves RB Leipzig this summer, Van de Ven would be on the shortlist to replace him. Whether that is accurate or not, on this evidence it would not be the worst idea.
He captained the Dutch team for part of the Portugal game and he certainly seems to have a presence. One of the advantages of the stadiums not being full is that you can hear most of what the players are saying — and Van de Ven is loud and vocal and everything you’d expect from a leader in that sense. More interesting, though, is the blend of size, speed and technical passing ability with which he plays.
Everyone knows about his pace; most people have seen that video of him defending a Union Berlin breakaway in the Bundesliga last season, blocking Jerome Roussillon’s shot on the goal line.
But his switches of play are impressively accurate and, against Portugal, he showed that he can either cut the ball into midfield, taking out lines of pressing players in the process, or just carry possession up the pitch himself. Think of him as a broad-shouldered Jan Vertonghen. That’s not who he is currently, but it shouldn’t be a ridiculous comparison in three or four years’ time.
This tournament can create false comparisons in the way that it pits players against each other who are at different stages of their physical development. So, the value of Van de Ven’s strength is difficult to measure within this particular context. But it is worth mentioning that he made Wolves’ Fabio Silva look helpless up front — he was too big, too quick, and too smart for him.
Silva is hardly a star of the game, but he has played well over 100 senior matches in England, Belgium and the Netherlands, so that dominance is a measure of something.
Imgine Romero….Tapsoba….Van de Ven as a back 3 in Contes system.Brief Athletic write-up on Mickey from the U21 Euros:
Defender (Wolfsburg/Netherlands), 22
Supposedly, if Josko Gvardiol leaves RB Leipzig this summer, Van de Ven would be on the shortlist to replace him. Whether that is accurate or not, on this evidence it would not be the worst idea.
He captained the Dutch team for part of the Portugal game and he certainly seems to have a presence. One of the advantages of the stadiums not being full is that you can hear most of what the players are saying — and Van de Ven is loud and vocal and everything you’d expect from a leader in that sense. More interesting, though, is the blend of size, speed and technical passing ability with which he plays.
Everyone knows about his pace; most people have seen that video of him defending a Union Berlin breakaway in the Bundesliga last season, blocking Jerome Roussillon’s shot on the goal line.
But his switches of play are impressively accurate and, against Portugal, he showed that he can either cut the ball into midfield, taking out lines of pressing players in the process, or just carry possession up the pitch himself. Think of him as a broad-shouldered Jan Vertonghen. That’s not who he is currently, but it shouldn’t be a ridiculous comparison in three or four years’ time.
This tournament can create false comparisons in the way that it pits players against each other who are at different stages of their physical development. So, the value of Van de Ven’s strength is difficult to measure within this particular context. But it is worth mentioning that he made Wolves’ Fabio Silva look helpless up front — he was too big, too quick, and too smart for him.
Silva is hardly a star of the game, but he has played well over 100 senior matches in England, Belgium and the Netherlands, so that dominance is a measure of something.
