Tottenham Hotspur's Micky van de Ven shuts down 'nonsense' talk, insists 'we all want to fight' before Atletico Madrid visit in UEFA Champions League

Ahead of Tottenham Hotspur's monumental uphill battle against Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Champions League, in which they trail by three goals after the first leg, defender Micky van de Ven says they "are doing everything to turn it around." Those words also ring true in their fight for Premier League survival, as the Dutchman rubbished the negative outside noise surrounding the club.

Micky van de Ven has insisted that he and his Tottenham Hotspur team-mates are ready to "fight" for European progression and Premier League survival.

In what has been a dismal campaign, Spurs find themselves 5-2 down against Atletico Madrid at the midway point of their UEFA Champions League last-16 tie before Wednesday's second leg, and one point above the Premier League drop zone.

Igor Tudor took over from Thomas Frank as interim head coach in February and lost his first four games in charge - conceding 14 goals - in defeats against Arsenal, Fulham, Crystal Palace and Atletico.

Transfers

Man Utd, Arsenal target impresses scouts with perfect hat-trick - Paper Round

3 hours ago

But there was a silver lining at the weekend as, against the odds, they fought back to draw against Liverpool at Anfield.

It turned out to be a huge point for their survival chances, considering all of their realistic relegation rivals also avoided defeat.

Before the return leg against Atletico at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium - where they have won just twice all season - Van de Ven was adamant that he and his team-mates have "all got [fight] in us".

Tudor has not seen anything 'even close' to Spurs' injury crisis

Video credit: TNT Sports

"We all want to fight for this club," he told TNT Sports in the build-up to the second leg, live on TNT Sports and discovery+.

"This club doesn’t need to be in this position. They used to be in the top six position [in the Premier League] at least, they don’t deserve this. We are doing everything to turn it around.

"People from the outside say that the players don’t care, and their heads are gone. Of course, the situation is really difficult but, I promise you every player who walks down that tunnel every day, to get onto the pitch to play a game, will give 100% for the club."

Considering the results on the board and the performances on the pitch, there has been plenty of negative discussion surrounding Spurs and their lack of fight in the midst of a shock relegation battle.

Van de Ven said it is "the worst" to hear such criticism but labelled the noise as "nonsense."

He added: "People just start saying things and then afterwards the fans start believing it and they come after us.

'We gave them three goals' - Danso rues first-half Spurs mistakes

Video credit: TNT Sports

"The guys just throw something out about a guy, and then we get, I won't say abuse, but people start messaging you and saying things that are not even true.

"They have a different perspective from that point. It’s just annoying that people can do these things, but there's nothing we can change about that."

'If you can't run, you can't fight'

Tudor's results thus far have been disappointing but Van de Ven said the interim head coach is working the players hard in training.

"He let us run a lot," Van de Ven said. "He's honest and said that we need to be fit and need to run. If you can’t run, you can’t fight.

"In the Premier League these days, it's not only playing with the ball. It's also that the opposition has the ball, and they keep playing, and you just need to defend the whole time.

"He just makes sure we're fit, and we run a lot and run for each other, so if one guy makes a mistake, the other guy helps him and if one guy jumps, the other guy needs to follow.

"Everything is connected and everybody needs to run as much as the other person because, if one guy is late, then the other one is late as well. He's really on us."

‘You can stay and cry or you can fight’ – Tudor’s rallying call to Spurs players

Video credit: SNTV

Van de Ven also lifted the lid on the systems they play, and how switching from a back three to a back four changes things.

"I’m well known with both systems, as well as multiple guys in the group. It’s a little switch you make in your head, you need to run a bit different and your positioning needs to be a little bit different.

"There are things you obviously need to change, but we’re quite used to both systems, so you know what to do."

• The numbers behind Marcus Rashford's impressive Barcelona loan
• 'The dream lives on' - Neymar refuses to give up on World Cup after Ancelotti snub

Spurs are up against it against Atletico after Diego Simeone's side capitalised on three errors - including one from Van de Ven - in the first half of the first leg.

A recovery from the position they are in would be unthinkable, and realistically, they have a bigger job to get on with on Sunday as they meet fellow relegation battlers Nottingham Forest.

"We have nothing to lose [against Atletico]," Van de Ven said. "We can just go out there, show our mentality and football skills and, from there, build up to a massive game at the weekend."

How to watch Tottenham Hotspur v Atletico Madrid on TNT Sports

Tottenham Hotspur v Atletico Madrid takes place on Wednesday, March 18 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.

Kick-off is at 20:00 UK time, with live coverage on TNT Sports 3 and discovery+ starting from 19:00.

TNT Sports is available across all major TV platforms, offering a line-up of up to four TV channels (TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports 2, TNT Sports 3, TNT Sports 4), and up to six digital or red-button channels (TNT Sports 5 to 10), and TNT Sports Ultimate plus TNT Sports Box Office HD.

You can subscribe to TNT Sports through discovery+, BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media.

To find out where your local establishments showing TNT Sports are, use our Pub Finder.

For the latest information on which football matches are on TNT Sports, click here.

Here is the TNT Sports schedule and TV guide. And for the full Premier League schedule, click here.

Transfers

Rodri favours Barcelona over Real, Atleti readying Romero bid - Euro Transfer News

19 hours ago

Transfers

Atletico weigh up Grealish move as Spurs make Osimhen bid - Paper Round

03/08/2026 at 11:24