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Van de Ven ready to return for Tottenham v Elfsborg

football29 January 2025 15:59| © Reuters
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Micky van de Ven © Gallo Images

Tottenham Hotspur's under-fire manager Ange Postecoglou finally had some better injury news as he confirmed defender Micky van de Ven will feature against IF Elfsborg on Thursday.

The 23-year-old Netherlands international has been out of action since picking up a hamstring injury in Tottenham's 4-3 home loss against Chelsea early in December.

"Micky is good, he's good to go. We'll try to get him some match minutes. He's had a good week, 10 days with the team," Postecoglou told reporters on Wednesday.

Van de Ven has twice been ruled out for lengthy spells with hamstring problems but Postecoglou said he would have no hesitation about putting him straight back in.

"I'm not wary, he's got to come back at some stage. We've done everything in our power," the Australian said. "He's ticked every box and been given clearance by the medical team."

There was less good news though for Tottenham with midfielder James Maddison facing two or three weeks out with a calf strain while Van de Ven's central defensive partner Cristian Romero is not yet ready to return.

The club are also still without the likes of striker Dominic Solanke and goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.

Tottenham have won just once in 11 Premier League matches and sit 15th but they can wrap up a top eight finish in the Europa League and seal a last-16 spot on Thursday.

Postecoglou's side are sixth in the standings with the top eight automatically qualifying for the knockout phase. Even a draw against Swedish club Elfsborg could be enough for them to progress.

Tottenham are also in the League Cup semifinal, second leg against Liverpool next week and have an FA Cup fourth-round tie at Aston Villa on the horizon.

While Tottenham's Premier League campaign has been dire, the club are still hopeful of delivering a first trophy since 2008, with Swedish midfielder Dejan Kulusevski in no doubt that Postecoglou remains the right man for the job.

"Because we have had games when we showed perfect football, football that not many teams in the world can play, beautiful games like Man City away 4-0, so I think he's the right man," Kulusevski told reporters.

"We want to win for him and I want to play the football he wants so I have to fight for him. I believe in that football."

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