Reasons Why Matthijs De Ligt Will Rediscover His Best At Manchester United

Manchester United will be counting on the Matthijs de Ligt they have signed as the Ajax talent who was dominating in the Champions League at 19 years of age, rather than the one who ended up falling behind Eric Dier in the pecking order at Bayern Munich.

De Ligt’s career has somewhat stagnated since he rose to prominence in Europe as a teenager.

Successive moves to Juventus and Bayern haven’t worked out for the Dutch center-back, with the transfer fees getting progressively smaller each time he has moved on.

United negotiated what seems to be a highly advantageous deal with Bayern, starting at £38.5m with an additional potential £5m in add-ons. They’ve brought in a player known for his physicality and composure to the ball, attributes that appear to be an ideal fit for the Premier League.

With Erik ten Hag again

It wasn’t Erik ten Hag who gave De Ligt his senior debut at Ajax, but the United boss is the coach who has had the single greatest impact on his career to date.

Within three months of taking charge of the Amsterdam giants at the start of 2018, Ten Hag had named an 18-year-old De Ligt his new captain.

Their relationship flourished, and it was Ligt, alongside Frenkie de Jong, who captivated audiences across Europe as Ajax advanced to the Champions League semi-finals the following year, coming close to reaching the final.

“Erik ten Hag shaped the early stages of my career, so he knows how to get the best out of me and I cannot wait to work with him again,” De Ligt said upon his unveiling in Manchester.

If there is anyone who knows how to get the best out of De Ligt, it is Ten Hag.

Wrong stints at Juventus & Bayern

Why were Juventus and Bayern both prepared to accept a loss on De Ligt after only three and two years respectively? Ultimately, neither club was the right fit for him because of the bigger picture and it resulted in De Ligt not flourishing like he was expected to. That doesn’t take away from his quality.

Serie A was not particularly suited to De Ligt’s skill set. By 2019, Juventus’s dominance in the league was beginning to wane, which only intensified the expectations of a high-profile signing who had just turned 20. In three years, De Ligt found himself under three different managers.

while Juventus haven’t been champions since that first season, and the club was ultimately enveloped in scandal not long after he was sold.

Bayern and the Bundesliga seemed a better fit.

However, De Ligt found himself in a comparable situation; another of Europe’s enduring domestic monopolies began to break down.

He had to go through more managerial changes and was regularly in and out of the team under Thomas Tuchel.

When new coach Vincent Kompany expressed his preference for Dayot Upamecano and Kim Min-Jae, it became clear that it was time to leave

Real-life football is so much more than plug-and-play. The setting, environment, and timing need to be right for the individual.

He’s still young

Because De Ligt first became widely known at the age of 17, it is easy to forget that he’s still got a lot of football ahead of him.

He was born more recently than his new club won the Treble in 1999 and celebrated his 25th birthday on the day that his signing was announced.

Although the last few seasons haven’t gone exactly as he hoped, De Ligt has plenty of time on his side to realize long-term potential.

Better suited than Maguire

United has made a focused effort to transform the dynamics of their defense this summer. Andre Onana has his intention to build from the back, a ball-playing style that doesn’t align with Harry Maguire’s strengths.

He has sometimes struggled when receiving the ball from the goalkeeper over the past year.

For as long as Leny Yoro is sidelined, the assumption is that Lisandro Martinez is the left center-back, and De Ligt is, therefore, in a battle with Maguire for the other starting berth. And while Maguire will remain a valued squad member, De Ligt is more comfortable with such demands on the ball.

United already possess attacking full-backs in Luke Shaw (when fit) and Diogo Dalot, and they’ve replaced the defense-oriented Aaron Wan-Bissaka with Nouss Mazraoui, indicating the direction Ten Hag intends for his team to take.