Tottenham to confirm Micky van de Ven and Alejo Veliz as Tanguy Ndombele and Djed Spence put on transfer list
Tottenham are closing in on two more summer signings, with defender Micky van de Ven and forward Alejo Veliz both due for medicals today.
Netherlands Under-21 centre-half Van de Ven was at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium yesterday to watch his new side beat Shakhtar Donetsk 5-1 in a friendly for the people of Ukraine. He is set to complete a move worth about £43million from Wolfsburg, with head coach Ange Postecoglou hoping the 22-year-old is the first of two new additions at centre-half.
“There’s no doubt we need some bolstering in that area,” Postecoglou said yesterday. “We’re looking for players that can play the kind of football we want. Hopefully, we’ll get one or two done in the next couple of days to bolster us in that area.”
Highly-rated forward Veliz is also due to sign a long-term contract, after Spurs agreed a fee of about £13m with Rosario Central. The 19-year-old Argentina youth international is considered one for the future but will remain at Spurs this season, despite the Argentine club requesting his return on loan.
Their arrivals will leave Postecoglou with a squad of more than 35 senior players, but Spurs hope to accelerate outgoings this week. Hugo Lloris, Tanguy Ndombele, Joe Rodon and Djed Spence, who were all left out of the squad to face Shakhtar, are on the transfer list, while Davinson Sanchez and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg are among those who could leave for the right price.
“I don’t have a fixed number [of players] in my head, but fair to say our squad is too big at the moment,” said Postecoglou. “There are obviously guys who will look for opportunities elsewhere.
“It is not something I am involved in. I will deal with what’s in front of me and I think we’ll see some movement out over the next few weeks. We’ve obviously got a bit of time before the end of the transfer window.”
Harry Kane scored four goals yesterday but his future remains uncertain, with Bayern Munich still confident of landing the England captain and waiting for Spurs to respond to their latest bid.
Postecoglou afterwards aimed a dig at Bayern’s very public pursuit of Kane, saying: “Right now, he is a contracted player of our club. I wouldn’t talk about contracted players at other clubs, but I’m not at Bayern, so they can go the way they want.”
