Jan Vertonghen returns to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday as our special guest for the Premier League clash against Manchester City (4.30pm UK).
One of our great players of the modern era, 315 appearances in all competitions between 2012-2020, Jan will relive some wonderful Spurs memories when he speaks to Paul Coyte at half-time.
Jan is one of only 17 players to reach 200-plus appearances for us in the Premier League and one of only 10 to make over 50 appearances for us in Europe, his 56 currently seventh in our all-time list. He's also Belgium's record appearance maker with 157 caps between 2007-2024, including winning bronze at the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Gallery | Jan's eight years at Spurs
August, 2012: Jan is presented as a Spurs player alongside Gylfi Sigurdsson by then-Head Coach Andre Villas-Boas
August, 2012: Jan makes his debut for the Club against West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League
September, 2012: The defender scores his first goal for us in a League Cup tie at Carlisle United
September, 2012: Celebrating against Manchester United in a 3-2 win at Old Trafford - his deflected effort hit the target but was later ruled as an own goal
December, 2012: Nobody was taking his effort against Swansea City away, as the defender's strike sealed all three points for us in a 1-0 win at the Lane!
March, 2013: With some neat link-up play with Gareth Bale, Jan registers a goal and assist as we take all three point in a 2-1 win at Swansea
March, 2013: His bright debut season continues in the spring as he's named the Premier League's Player of the Month - a period which includes a brace against Liverpool at Anfield
October, 2013: Jan skippers the side for the first time in a 2-0 Europa League win away to FC Sheriff, also getting himself on the scoresheet
January, 2015: Jan helps us reach the 2015 League Cup Final, seeing off Sheffield United at the semi-final stage
March, 2015: Jan leaps to head the ball against Chelsea in the 2015 League Cup Final
November, 2015: Jan celebrates with close friend Mousa Dembele after the midfielder fired home a late winner against Anderlecht in the Europa League
April, 2016: Following the arrival of compatriot Toby Alderweireld in the summer of 2015, the Belgian defensive duo form a strong bond at the heart of our defence
May, 2016: Jan in action in a 2-2 draw with Chelsea – a game which he describes as one of his favourite 'battles' in a Spurs shirt
September, 2016: Jan makes his Champions League debut for us at Wembley against AS Monaco
September, 2016: Jan shows off his ball skills in training before our Champions League clash with CSKA Moscow in Russia
April, 2017: The Belgian international in FA Cup semi-final action against Chelsea at Wembley
April, 2017: Jan and Eric Dier celebrate after a 2-0 win in the final north London derby at the Lane
May, 2017: Jan in action against Manchester United in the last-ever game at White Hart Lane
January, 2018: The defender fires home a sweet 30-yard strike in our 3-0 FA Cup third round triumph over AFC Wimbledon
April, 2018: Jan shares a hug with Hugo Lloris after we defeat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge for the first time in 28 years
April, 2018: Jan clears the danger in our FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United at Wembley
May, 2018: Jan is named our Player of the Season for the 2017/18 campaign
August, 2018: Celebrating after opening our goalscoring account in the 2018/19 season with a header in our 2-1 win at Newcastle United... merely weeks after returning from World Cup duty with Belgium
January, 2019: Jan wears the armband in our League Cup semi-final, second leg clash with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge
February, 2019: The Belgian international produces a Man of the Match performance against Borussia Dortmund in our Champions League, round of 16 clash at Wembley with a goal and assist to his name
March, 2019: Celebrations with Harry Kane and Hugo Lloris after a last-ditch block in the six-yard box to prevent Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from snatching a late win for his side
April, 2019: Jan in action on opening night at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in our 2-0 win over Crystal Palace
April, 2019: Battling with Manchester City’s Gabriel Jesus in our Champions League quarter-final, first leg win at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
May, 2019: On the ball in our memorable Champions League semi-final, second leg triumph over his old side Ajax, wearing a protective face mask after taking a knock in the first leg
June, 2019: Jan blocks a shot from Liverpool’s Mo Salah in the 2019 Champions League Final in Madrid
December, 2019: Celebrating with the team after he heads us to a stoppage-time victory at Wolves, with what turns out to be his last Premier League goal for us
March, 2020: With the captain's armband on once more, Jan scores his first goal in our new stadium and final Spurs goal as we take on Norwich City in an FA Cup fifth round tie
July, 2020: Jan is presented with a special 'Super Jan' commemorative framed picture by Hugo Lloris at Hotspur Way, signed by the squad
July, 2020: Jan and Michel Vorm, who both depart north London this summer, with watches presented to them as farewell gifts by Chairman Daniel Levy on behalf of the Club
Before Spurs, Jan joined Ajax's famed Academy in 2003 before signing professional terms in 2006. He went on to play over 200 times in all competitions for them, landing the Eredivisie title in 2011 and 2012. A regular captain of the team, Jan was also named Dutch Player of the Year in 2012.
Forming a formidible central defensive partnership with compatriot Toby Alderweireld, Jan made 120 appearances of a possible 152 as we finished third, runners-up, third and fourth in the Premier League between 2015/16 and 2018/19.
He also started 10 of 13 matches as we reached the UEFA Champions League Final against Liverpool in 2019, producing one of the great performances topped with a goal as we beat Borussia Dortmund 3-0 in the Round of 16, first leg at Wembley.
Jan signed off with appearance 315 against Newcastle during the Premier League's return in the 2020 COVID pandemic at St James’ Park on 15 July, 2020. Sadly, there were no fans at his final matches in Lilywhite.
After Spurs, he had spells at Benfica - where he won the Primeira Liga title in 2022/23 - and Anderlecht, where he played for two seasons before retiring at the end of 2024/25.
That night against Dortmund...
Jan says goodbye - 2020
Jan's words on leaving us in the summer of 2020 summed up his feelings for the club...
“The Club means so much,” he told us. “From the first day I got here the people welcomed me and it felt like home. I was actually on the bench for my first game but after that, being able to play, being able to be important for the Club, with friends, it’s a very special feeling.
“I came here every day and it was just like I was hanging out with my friends and playing football. That feeling is very hard to describe. It just felt like enjoying my job, and that was very special.
“I always felt great in the environment, with the supporters, and always felt appreciated by them. My family settled in London, my kids being born here... I will always have good memories."
