FC Volendam chairman Jaap Veerman has admitted that the Dutch club had run into hard times financially and that they were saved by the sell-on fee that they received from Micky van de Ven’s transfer to Tottenham earlier this summer.
Van de Ven came through Volendam’s youth ranks and made a name for himself in the Dutch second tier before making a move to Wolfsburg as a 20-year-ld.
While the centre-back did not play much in his first six months at the Bundesliga side, he enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2022-23, establishing himself as a mainstay in the backline and garnering a reputation as one of the best young defenders in the division by the end of the campaign.
That prompted Tottenham to swoop for the Dutchman in the summer, with the North Londoners thought to have paid an initial €40m (£34.3m) and the German side in line to receive an additional €10m (£8.6m) if Spurs qualify for the Champions League (Sport BILD via Sport Witness).
(Photo by Henry Browne/Getty Images)
Micky van de Ven has made a huge impact at Spurs
Veerman has now revealed that Volendam received 12.5 per cent of the transfer fee Tottenham paid for Van de Ven, admitting that the cash injection came at a much-needed time.
He told RTL Nieuws: “We had to take action, otherwise the company judge could blame me for that.
“We are now betting on transfers and proceeds from former players of ours who go to another club. We were saved last summer because Micky van de Ven moved from VFL Wolfsburg to Tottenham Hotspur for €40m.
“We would have received 15% there but unfortunately, we agreed to 12.5%. But that saved us. I don’t see that happening every year.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Van de Ven’s progress from being a bench warmer in a Dutch second-tier side to being one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League (at least for the first few months) has been extremely rapid having formed a solid partnership with Cristian Romero prior to his hamstring injury which is expected to keep him out until at least January.
If he keeps progressing at the same pace over the coming year or two, the sky is the limit for the 22-year-old, who appears to have no obvious weaknesses in his game.
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