Ange Postecoglou has explained why Micky van de Ven is missing from Tottenham Hotspur's squad for Sunday's Premier League London derby against Brentford.
The Dutch defender made his first appearance of 2025 in Thursday's 3-0 Europa League win over Elfsborg, completing the first half of the contest after recovering from the thigh injury he sustained in December.
Postecoglou confirmed that Van de Ven was taken off as part of a pre-planned change, and he was expected to be involved in Sunday's trip to the Gtech Community Stadium after his replacement Radu Dragusin suffered a knee injury in midweek.
However, Van de Ven was a surprise absentee from Tottenham's matchday squad, with Archie Gray and Ben Davies instead selected to form the makeshift central pairing in front of Antonin Kinsky.
Speaking to the club's media channels ahead of kickoff, though, Postecoglou allayed fears that Van de Ven had suffered a setback in his recovery, and his absence is purely a case of managing his game time after a lengthy absence.
"We're just trying to manage his minutes," Postecoglou said. "It's a quick turnaround and with speaking with the medical team and Micky himself, we'll just keep him on ice this weekend, give him another week training and then hopefully he'll be ready for the end of the week."
Could Van de Ven miss Liverpool second leg?
© Imago
Postecoglou's affirmations that Van de Ven has not suffered a new injury will come as a relief to Spurs fans, but his revelation that he might not play again until the end of next week will not.
Tottenham travel to Anfield to face Liverpool in the second leg of their EFL Cup semi-final on Thursday evening, where the Lilywhites will have a one-goal lead to protect from their shock first-leg win.
By the time that fixture rolls around, Van de Ven would have had a full seven-day break since his last competitive appearance, but he is seemingly not guaranteed to return for the trip to Merseyside.
However, Spurs have no urgent need to rush the Dutchman back for the clash with Arne Slot's side, as Lens loanee Kevin Danso might be eligible to make his debut in that semi-final second leg after his arrival was confirmed on Sunday.
Van de Ven could instead target a return for next weekend's FA Cup fourth-round clash with Aston Villa at Villa Park, and fellow centre-back Cristian Romero has not been ruled out of that encounter yet either.
The Argentine has been seen on the training pitches as he steps up his rehabilitation from a thigh injury, but Postecoglou has admitted that his case will need monitoring on a weekly basis.
Ben Knapton
