From the summer, when he came to Tottenham, Van de Ven has been a revelation, displaying maturity and poise above his years.

Ronald Koeman, who gave the center back his first two caps during the international break by substituting him against both France and Greece, could not have noticed the performances. After all, he called up the player to the Dutch national team.

The 22-year-old replaced Feyenoord’s Quilindschy Hartman on 74 minutes as the away team looked for a late victory at the Stadium OPAP in Athens, despite the fact that he showed lots of good signs against the French. Instead, he was asked to play left-back against Greece.

Following a foul on Denzel Dumfries in the area on 89 minutes, Virgil van Dijk converted from the penalty spot to give the Netherlands the victory.

Micky Van de Ven still has room for improvement

Van van Ven’s cameo did not please Driessen in the slightest, as the Tottenham player appeared inexperienced on Monday night.

The reporter stated to VoetbalZone: “The Netherlands continued to have issues in the last stage against Greece. Van de Ven misplaces the ball, setting off a potentially harmful attack.

“You have to play in these situations. Then you notice that this is a player that hasn’t participated in many games at this level.

“He performed admirably in the match against France. He’s available for you to have there. He moves quickly and with strength. He has much to prove yet. Now, ten minutes versus an 80%-playing France has us utterly enthralled.

It’s true that he made a nice tackle, but when someone makes a solid tackle or throws a fantastic ball, we don’t always need to give it our best.  Though he is not very comfortable in the position, Van de Ven can play left back. Given that this was only his second game for his country, there probably would have been some anxiety.

When the European Championship arrives in the summer of next year, the 22-year-old will undoubtedly take Nathan Ake’s place as Van Dijk’s primary center-back partner.