‘That saved us’ – Chairman admits club were bailed out by Tottenham’s transfer decision

gamehuzc December 6, 2023

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Chairman of FC Volendam, Jaap Veerman, has acknowledged that the Dutch team had experienced financial difficulties and that only the sell-on fee from Micky van de Ven’s summer transfer to Tottenham kept them afloat.

After rising through the youth ranks of Volendam, Van de Ven established himself in the Dutch second division before moving to Wolfsburg as a 20-year-old.

The center-back had a quiet first half of the season at the Bundesliga team, but by the end of 2022–2023 he had made a name for himself as one of the best young defenders in the division and had established himself as a mainstay in the backline.

Spurs reportedly paid €40 million (£34.3 million) for the Dutchman in the summer after Spurs qualified for the Champions League (Sport BILD via Sport Witness). The Dutchman is expected to receive an additional €10 million (£8.6 million) from the German team. Spurs’ pursuit of the Dutchman was sparked by this.

Micky van de Ven has made a huge impact at Spurs

Now that Volendam has learned that Volendam received 12.5% of the transfer fee Tottenham paid for Van de Ven, Veerman has acknowledged that the financial boost was much-needed.

“We had to take action, otherwise the company judge could blame me for that,” he said to RTL Nieuws.

“At this time, we are placing bets on player transfers and earnings when our former players join other teams. Micky van de Ven’s €40 million move from VFL Wolfsburg to Tottenham Hotspur last summer saved us.

“Unfortunately, we only agreed to 12.5% there, but we would have received 15% there. However, that kept us safe. That doesn’t seem to happen every year.

Having established a strong partnership with Cristian Romero before suffering a hamstring injury that is expected to keep him out until at least January, Van de Ven went from being a bench warmer in a Dutch second-tier side to one of the best center-backs in the Premier League (at least for the first few months).

The 22-year-old seems to have no discernible weaknesses in his game, so if he continues to advance at the same rate over the next year or two, the possibilities are endless for him.