Dutch centre-half joins from Wolfsburg as Spurs’ signing of Alejo Veliz from Rosario Central moves towards completion
Tottenham have completed the signing of Micky van de Ven in a deal expected to be worth more than £40 million, while the club are also closing in on £12 million forward Alejo Veliz.
Defender Van de Ven has signed a six-year deal at Spurs subject to international clearance while Argentina Under-20 striker Alejo Veliz has completed his medical ahead of his move.
The 19-year-old is expected to complete the formalities of the deal this week, with a decision to be made over whether he stays at Spurs this season or is loaned out for first-team experience
Veliz has been targeted as a player with potential to become a first-team player, having broken into Rosario’s team two years ago and also scoring the winner in their derby against Newell’s Old Boys last year. He played under Carlos Tévez during the former Manchester City striker’s brief spell as manager.
He also played for Javier Mascherano, Tévez’s former team-mate at West Ham, during this summer’s Under-20 World Cup when he scored against Uzbekistan and Guatemala in the tournament hosted by his country.
While Tottenham are shaping Ange Postecoglou’s first-team squad for the season, they are also recruiting young players to develop, with highly rated Blackburn defender Ashley Phillips arriving on a five-year deal last week.
Given Veliz’s potential, he is expected to have a percentage sell-on clause attached to the deal that will see Rosario Central get an amount of the profits on a future deal.
England winger James Maddison has been Spurs’ marquee summer signing, while Manor Solomon has arrived on a free transfer and Italian goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario will compete for the No1 jersey. Dejan Kulusevski and Pedro Porro’s loans have been made permanent.
Postecoglou is also in the market for a midfielder should Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg depart, with Chelsea’s Conor Gallagher wanted in that position.
