Tottenham centre-half Micky van de Ven is hopeful his injury problems are behind him after coming through an hour unscathed on his latest return to the side and says the club can still achieve "something special" this season by winning the Europa League.
Van de Ven was impressive on his first start since a fleeting return to the side in late January, as Spurs beat AZ Alkmaar 3-1 in the Europa League to set up a quarter-final against German club Eintracht Frankfurt next month.
The Dutchman has had two false starts since first injuring his hamstring against Manchester City in October, returning to the XI to face Chelsea on December 8 and then again for the Europa League tie against Elfsborg in January, only to immediately return to the sidelines on both occasions.
"It's been really difficult, it has been a long time," he said.
"My first [injury] happened against City and then against Chelsea a re-injury and afterwards some little problems. It was really tough but I’m really happy to be back and just make sure I’m staying fit now for the rest of the season.
"I'm really excited and happy to be back. I came through the 60 minutes feeling well.
"I feel good so hopefully I can build up from this."
Van de Ven played a half against Elfsborg on January 30 but his return was short-lived, with the speedy defender reporting discomfort in his hamstring after the game.
Head coach Ange Postecoglou later insisted he had not suffered another injury but explained that the 23-year would spend time seeing specialists to work on the "mechanics" of his body, including his running style, to ensure he could remain fit long-term.
"It was just some problems and I didn’t really feel comfortable, that was the thing," he said.
"The gaffer and the medical team made a decision to manage me for training and match minutes to make sure I was 100 per cent fit when I come back.
"I was 100 per cent fit for sure but after the Elfsborg game I didn’t really feel comfortable [in] myself but I wanted to keep pushing. Then they made the decision to keep me back to make sure 100 per cent I was good.
"Of course, you need to [work on] your running technique and I also did it at [former club] Volendam. I know what to do and that’s the thing. But now also [the medical staff] help me. Specialists from outside Spurs came in to help me with my hamstring and help me with different things, so it’s really good to have them here."
Asked if he was confident he could start three games a week if necessary, van de Ven added: "I feel good, so we’re going to see what happens now."
Trailing 1-0 from the first leg in Holland, Wilson Odobert's double either side of a James Maddison strike ensured Spurs reached the last-eight with a deserved win over AZ.
"I think we played a really good game overall," van de Ven said. "Of course a difficult game because we were 1-0 behind so we had to change it around. I think from the first minute as a team we showed we really wanted to turn it around in 90 minutes and the team did an unbelievable job.
"We all have the trust in the gaffer and the team. It has been a really difficult season for us of course but we showed our mentality tonight and hopefully we can build on this and [take it] into the next round.
"I trust in the team and everybody has trust. We’re out of the Carabao and FA Cup, Premier League it’s been a difficult season. So of course this is a competition we can definitely win.
"I don’t want to look too far ahead but we can do a good job. I know I have trust in this team and in the gaffer, so hopefully we can do something special."
