Micky van de Ven points finger at Tottenham teammates after Aston Villa defeat
Micky van de Ven did not hold back after Tottenham Hotspur’s 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa, openly criticising his teammates for a lack of creativity in attack and insisting that the team should have done far more to secure a result. Despite a bright start at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Thomas Frank’s side were ultimately undone by two well-taken Villa goals, leaving Spurs frustrated and empty-handed.
Tottenham appeared to be in complete control early on, breaking the deadlock in just the fifth minute through Rodrigo Bentancur. The Uruguayan midfielder finished calmly from close range after Joao Palhinha nodded a clever header across the penalty area. The home crowd roared in approval as Spurs looked set to continue their fine home form.
For much of the first half, Tottenham dictated the tempo and created several opportunities to extend their advantage. However, they were punished for not making their dominance count. Aston Villa found an equaliser eight minutes before half-time when Morgan Rogers unleashed a low drive from the edge of the box that beat Guglielmo Vicario at full stretch.
The second half proved more frustrating for the hosts. Despite enjoying more of the ball and carving out half-chances, Spurs lacked a cutting edge in the final third. Villa, meanwhile, grew increasingly confident and snatched all three points late on through substitute Emiliano Buendia. The Argentine playmaker, only on the pitch for a short time, weaved his way into space before bending a stunning effort beyond Vicario in the 77th minute to silence the home supporters.
While Tottenham ended the game with superior stats in possession, total shots, and efforts on target, Van de Ven was quick to admit that those numbers meant little without a result. Speaking candidly to Sky Sports after the match, the Dutch defender expressed his disappointment with the team’s performance.
“I don’t think we did enough,” Van de Ven said. “If we had done enough, we wouldn’t have lost this game. They scored two goals from outside the box, but that’s no excuse — we should have created more for ourselves. We always give 100% for the fans and the club, but we needed to be sharper in front of goal today.”
Tottenham’s preparations were disrupted before kick-off when Cristian Romero, one of the team’s most influential defenders, suffered an injury during the warm-up and had to be replaced by Kevin Danso in the starting lineup.
“We knew during the week that he was a doubt,” Van de Ven explained. “Of course, it’s always disappointing when someone like Cristian pulls out so late, but I think Kevin came in and did really well considering the circumstances.”
After the match, Thomas Frank confirmed that Romero’s issue was not a serious one, offering a brief update on his condition.
“It’s a minor abductor injury,” the Spurs boss revealed. “He’d been feeling it for a few days. We thought he would be fine, but it didn’t feel right in the warm-up. Thankfully, it’s not a big problem.”
Reflecting on the overall result, Frank emphasised that the performance was not entirely negative despite the loss.
“There were two very strong teams on the pitch,” he said. “We started well and could have been two or three up before they equalised. Villa scored twice from situations where, under normal circumstances, we’d be happy to let players shoot from that range. But football can be cruel — we just didn’t take our moments.”
For Tottenham, the defeat represents a setback in their push to keep pace with the Premier League’s top four. While the performance showed flashes of quality, Van de Ven’s post-match comments highlight the growing sense that the team must rediscover their clinical edge if they are to maintain their Champions League ambitions under Frank’s leadership.