Micky van de Ven identifies shared trait between Roberto De Zerbi and Ange Postecoglou

Tottenham’s Micky van de Ven draws parallels between Ange Postecoglou and Roberto De Zerbi.

Micky van de Ven has taken a very safe approach in his public statements, especially about Tottenham throughout this season. He does not seek controversy. The Dutchman expresses himself with the considered carefulness of a player who understands that words, extracted from context and reproduced in press releases, carry implications he cannot control.

He came across as very subtle on The Overlap when discussing Ange Postecoglou’s sacking. He was measured when addressing the club’s relegation battle. VDV has, throughout a campaign that might reasonably have driven less composed characters to public frustration, maintained a tone of professional circumspection that reflects both his personality and his understanding of what the moment demands.

His recent comments connecting Roberto De Zerbi with Ange Postecoglou deserve proper examination, because they carry more analytical content than the headline framing suggests.

Similarities

Speaking to Stadium Astro via Football London ahead of the relegation showdown, Van de Ven explained how De Zerbi has managed to drag the Lilywhites out of a ‘difficult situation’. 

“He likes to play way more with the ball than we did with the former managers. He gives us so much confidence, gives us so much trust that we can play like this because we did it before already, especially under Ange.”

De Zerbi had already made explicit his desire to replicate Postecoglou’s Tottenham, saying at his first press conference. Van de Ven’s parallel, then, is not a surprise. It is a confirmation from within the dressing room of what De Zerbi had already stated publicly.

Van de Ven understands what Postecoglou’s system demanded and what De Zerbi’s system demands. His observation that the two philosophies share common DNA is not a superficial media comparison. It is a tactile, experiential assessment from a player who has operated within both frameworks. The high defensive line, the possession-based build-up, the expectation that defenders contribute actively to the progression of play rather than merely receive the ball, all of these characteristics connect the two approaches.