There was a time, not so long ago, when it seemed Micky van de Ven was surplus to requirements at a club in the Dutch second division.
That the 22-year-old defender has just completed a move from Wolfsburg to Tottenham for a reported £43m, which speaks volumes of the player and the project that enabled the talented defender to flourish.
Van de Ven earned his breakthrough at Volendam following Wim Jonk's appointment in April 2019, with the new regime implementing the same 'Plan Cruyff' principles that proved successful at Ajax.
The teenager had been told by the previous management he was down the pecking order and free to look for another club, but was immediately handed a contract by Jonk's staff, who spotted a "raw diamond" in their under-19s.