A version of this article was first published on July 1, we have now republished it De Ligt has signed for Manchester United
Most teenagers would hesitate to take the microphone in front of a crowd of over 100,000 people. But every single person on Amsterdam’s Museumplein was aware that Matthijs de Ligt was not a typical 19-year-old.
As Ajax players, staff and fans celebrated their 34th Eredivisie title and another KNVB Cup success in May 2019, their precocious young captain thrilled the crowds with an unusually deep, booming voice for his age, forging a link between his generation and that of Johan Cruyff.
“More importantly, we showed everyone what Ajax is all about, what a city Amsterdam is,” said De Ligt. “We showed everyone what we stand for, and that is attacking football. We showed everyone what the great man above us wanted to see and what he expected from us.”
It was an impeccable speech and, to reinforce the impression that this was a young man who could do no wrong, he even caught a beer can thrown into the air from the crowd before it hit the mayor of Amsterdam.
Ask anyone who was active in Europe’s elite at the time and they will agree that de Ligt, who has now signed for Manchester United, was at the beginning of a career that would make him one of the most outstanding centre-backs of his generation. Not least his then coach, Erik ten Hag.
“I don’t know if De Ligt has shown 60 to 80 percent of his potential,” ten Hag said later that year, “but we are talking about one of the best defenders in Europe and I have no doubt that he will soon be number one in that position.”
And although he has since featured regularly for two of Europe’s biggest clubs, won Serie A (with Juventus in Italy) and the Bundesliga, and moved for a total transfer fee of €162.5 million (£137 million) before joining Manchester United for €45 million, there is still the story of untapped potential and perhaps the need for a fresh start.
As it turned out, Ten Hag was the man who could help. Manchester United had been looking for a new centre-back as a priority and their manager’s admiration for De Ligt was no secret. But more importantly, that admiration was shared by senior officials at Old Trafford.
The transfer was made independently of the signing of Jarrad Branthwaite, who was also targeted in defence, and by signing 25-year-old De Ligt, United have signed a player whose potential was never in doubt.
United have completed a transfer of De Ligt from Bayern Munich (Kevin Voigt/Getty Images)
De Ligt stood out at a young age in Ajax’s fabled youth team. He benefited from his early physical development compared to his peers and those in charge at the Amsterdam club were quick to let him skip the promotion routes in the system.
“The goal with Matthijs was to get him into the first team as early as possible, at a young age and at the best possible level,” says a source speaking on condition of anonymity to protect relationships. But playing as a centre-back against much smaller boys was not particularly challenging.
The solution? Playing him in midfield. Despite being only 14, he was moved further forward and given more responsibility in possession to improve his passing range. “For a long time he was the number 6, just to make sure he could handle the 360-degree turn (with pressure from all directions),” the source adds.
A month after his 17th birthday, De Ligt made his senior debut, scoring in a 5-0 win over Willem II, making him Ajax’s second-youngest goalscorer of all time. It was the first of several records or milestones, all of which marked him as a unique talent.
Before the end of the season, he became the youngest player ever to start in a European final, but could not prevent his team from losing 2-0 to Jose Mourinho’s United in the Europa League final. The following year, he became the first defender to win the Golden Boy Award.
And at that point, thanks to Ten Hag, he was already the youngest captain in Ajax’s 118-year history.
In an interview with The athlete Last year, De Ligt described the United manager as the coach who had the biggest influence on his development. “Even at 18, he saw in me someone who could lead a team, who could lead by example, who could be a good captain.”
De Ligt showcased these and other skills during Ajax’s extraordinary run to the Champions League semi-finals under Ten Hag, cementing his reputation as one of Europe’s brightest young talents and virtually ensuring that the 2018–19 season would be his last in Amsterdam.
Erik ten Hag and De Ligt here at Ajax in 2018 (VI Images via Getty Images)
De Ligt had his pick of virtually any major European club that summer, joining Juventus for up to €85.5 million (£72.4 million). The most expensive young defender of all time was also the best investment Juventus had ever made, according to Fabio Paratici, the Serie A club’s then head of football.
The idea was that De Ligt would be given the opportunity to play alongside Giorgio Chiellini, learn from him and eventually become his successor, carrying Juventus’ long tradition of defensive greats into the next generation. However, Juventus’ succession planning had to be accelerated somewhat as Chiellini tore a cruciate ligament early in De Ligt’s first season.
Partly because of Chiellini’s absence, partly because of that great tradition of defending, but mainly because of the increased expectations placed on Juventus in the age of Cristiano Ronaldo, De Ligt came under more scrutiny in Turin than he ever did at Ajax.
Mistakes were magnified and mistakes exaggerated, contributing to the impression that he had not yet fully reached his potential. However, criticism generally ignored the larger context.
Despite successive head coaches such as Maurizio Sarri, Andrea Pirlo and Max Allegri using him in different roles and different defensive systems, De Ligt rarely seemed unworthy of his status as Chiellini’s ultimate successor.
But ultimately it was not to be. As he entered the final two years of his contract, negotiations over an extension stalled. First from the late Mino Raiola, then from De Ligt himself during an international match, comments hinted at a split. In the summer, a move to Bayern was agreed, a deal worth up to €77 million (£65 million).
De Ligt left Juventus with just one Scudetto, but still won every domestic trophy during his three years in Turin. His final year was arguably his best on an individual level, as he played more minutes than any other outfield player in the squad that year.
De Ligt spent three seasons at Juventus (Daniele Badolato – Juventus FC/Juventus FC via Getty Images)
Bayern’s offer to the player was simple. “We don’t want you as a defender,” officials told De Ligt. “We want you to be the boss of the defense.” His leadership qualities were heavily emphasized by a club that had lost such high-profile players as David Alaba, Javi Martinez and Jerome Boateng in recent years.
As a former Bayern reserve team coach, Ten Hag had recommended de Ligt to join the Bundesliga giants before his departure from Ajax three years earlier. When de Ligt finally followed his former mentor’s advice, Ten Hag called him to congratulate him.
There was excitement in Bayern at the time, but for De Ligt, it was a challenging few years in the midst of challenging years for Bayern. There were mistakes – not too many, but enough to not earn the full trust of the supporters and fans.
However, this aspect cannot easily be separated from the larger context in which the team is missing important team components and there are changes in management.
Julian Nagelsmann was an admirer of de Ligt and the two had a very good working relationship. De Ligt even sent the outgoing Bayern head coach a message in March last year thanking him for everything he had done to help him settle in Germany.
In contrast, De Ligt could not always count on the same support from Nagelsmann’s successor Thomas Tuchel. Despite complimenting him in public, Tuchel more often preferred Dayot Upamecano and Kim Min-jae in the centre of his defence. When Eric Dier joined in January, De Ligt seemed to slip even further down the pecking order at times.
Tuchel switched to a back three for the crucial game at Bayer Leverkusen in February, but left de Ligt out of the squad and left him on the bench as Bayern suffered a 3-0 defeat. De Ligt regained his place soon after and was a more regular starter in Tuchel’s final months as manager, but started less than half of Bayern’s games in all competitions last season.
That’s partly down to an injury history that will give some United fans pause. After being a regular at Ajax under Ten Hag, injuries and niggles have plagued him since then. But before he was sidelined under Tuchel last season, De Ligt was averaging 27 league appearances each year.
He is far from an automatic starter at international level. In some ways he is still recovering from being made a scapegoat for the sending off that resulted in the Netherlands’ elimination from the last European Championship against the Czech Republic. This time around, De Ligt started on the bench in all three group matches but did not play. CompetitionContinue with Virgil van Dijk as a partner in the heart of Ronald Koeman’s defense, which is stiff.
Even when he is not playing, he uses his time wisely. De Ligt is an avid reader and revealed The athlete Last year he leafed through the autobiographies of defensive greats from the past.
“I’ve read autobiographies of Per Mertesacker, Jaap Stam, Sol Campbell, John Terry… you name it, I’ve read them,” he said. “I can improve my game by drawing on their experiences. They sometimes say things that make you feel you’re not alone.”
De Ligt could one day emulate them. His reputation as one of the best young centre-backs in European football has faded somewhat in recent years, but he has earned it for a reason. Ten Hag, for example, believes in him and it seems he is not the only one at Old Trafford.
Additional reporting: James Horncastle, Jacob Whitehead and Seb Stafford-Bloor
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(Photo by Manchester United/Manchester United via Getty Images)
