Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand admitted that Micky van de Ven and Djed Spence would be the only two Tottenham players he would want at Old Trafford.
Tottenham’s woes intensified at the weekend after newly appointed manager Roberto De Zerbi lost his first match in charge of the Premier League strugglers.
Sunderland inflicted a 1-0 defeat on Tottenham at the Stadium of Light on Sunday and Roberto De Zerbi’s men are now sitting in the Premier League relegation zone.
Spurs are 18th in the Premier League table with only six league matches remaining this season and Tottenham are two points adrift from 17th-place West Ham now.
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Rio Ferdinand, the English former professional footballer, watches as Jannik Sinner competes against Tomas Machac during a singles match at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash complex in 2026 in Doha, Qatar.
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Why Rio Ferdinand only picked Micky van de Ven and Djed Spence from the entire Tottenham squad for Man Utd
Roberto De Zerbi, who was once linked with the Manchester United manager role, now faces the massive task of trying to rescue Tottenham from relegation.
Tottenham have lost 16 of their 32 Premier League matches this season and Spurs are winless in their last five league fixtures at the tail end of the 2025-26 campaign.
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Speaking on his podcast, Rio Ferdinand was asked if there were any Tottenham players that he would want to take for Manchester United if he had the chance.
The 47-year-old United legend admitted that there were no standout names before he ultimately settled on Tottenham defenders Micky van de Ven and Djed Spence.
“Not right now, no,” he said on Rio Ferdinand Presents.
“Can’t think of any that I’d take, especially the way they’re playing now. Van de Ven, maybe. Van de Ven and Djed Spence, actually. Djed Spence.”
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Tottenham’s woes in the Premier League are the exact opposite of Man Utd’s situation in the 2025-26 campaign
Tottenham had the last laugh over Man Utd last season after Spurs secured the Europa League trophy in a 1-0 win at the San Mames Stadium in Bilbao in 2025.
Spurs finished 17th in the Premier League table in the 2024-25 campaign, while United were only two places ahead of Tottenham under Ruben Amorim’s reign.
Fast-forward from Man Utd’s Europa League final defeat and the Red Devils have a real chance of finishing inside the Premier League top four in the 2025-26 season.
United have enjoyed a turnaround in form under Michael Carrick since January, while Tottenham have plunged further into a Premier League relegation fight.
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