Matthijs de Ligt: Bayern not signing a world-class defender
Carlo Garganese
- 19 Jul 2022 11:27 CDT
- 5 min read
Matthijs de Ligt has officially completed his move from Juventus to Bayern Munich, putting pen to paper on a five-year deal in Bavaria after an €80 million fee was agreed between the two clubs.
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De Ligt’s contract in Turin was set to expire in 2024 and he displayed little interest of penning a renewal, which was why Juventus were open to sell him - in fear that his value would plummet a year from now, just one year away from expiry.
Chelsea were also in the running to sign the Dutchman but he wanted to join Bayern instead, revealing in the official club announcement: "I am very happy to become a player of this great club. FC Bayern is the most successful club in Germany, one of the most successful clubs in Europe and the world.
"From the very beginning, I felt an honest appreciation of the sporting leadership, the coach, and the board, which convinced me. In addition, FC Bayern is an outstandingly managed club with big goals. I am very happy that I am now part of the history of FC Bayern."
De Ligt has left Juve after three years in Turin that didn't quite hit the heights expected of him when Juventus beat Barcelona to sign him from Ajax for €75 million in 2019.
The centre back had played a starring role for Erik ten Hag’s Ajax during their memorable 2018-19 Champions League journey, captaining the team at the age of just 19. He was the born leader of a team who eliminated champions Real Madrid in the last-16 and then Juventus themselves in the quarter-finals. De Ligt headed home the winner against the Bianconeri before they snapped him up a few months later.
Ajax were seconds away from reaching the final before having their hearts broken by a Lucas Moura hat-trick goal deep into injury time.
However, in truth, De Ligt’s three years at Juventus were somewhat underwhelming.
The Dutchman was good but on the whole he was not great. He certainly wasn't worth the €75m that Juventus paid for him.
De Ligt struggled to settle, understandably, during his first half-season at the club in 2019-20 under Maurizio Sarri.
He was thrust into the first team alongside Leonardo Bonucci after Giorgio Chiellini tore his ACL at the start of the season and made a catalogue of errors in his first months.
Juventus defender Matthijs de Ligt went from hero to villain for the Netherlands, as he followed a great block with a red card for handball.
10 men of the Netherlands have to beat Czech Republic to book a slot in the #Euro2020 quarter-finals. Can they do so? pic.twitter.com/InzwiTrSS3— vumaSPORT (@vumaSPORT) June 27, 2021
This saw him even dropped for fourth-choice centre back Merih Demiral, only regaining his place in the team when the Turk then tore his own ACL in January 2020.
De Ligt improved for the remainder of the campaign as Juventus limped to the Scudetto but, as was the case in the following campaign, he was far from being one of the best defenders in the league.
Indeed, as veterans Chiellini and Bonucci led Italy to European Championship glory in the summer of 2021, De Ligt made a horrific error for the Netherlands which directly led to their elimination in the last-16 against the Czech Repubic.
He handled the ball at 0-0 to get himself sent off, with the Czech Republic going on to win 2-0.
That was a microcosm of the kind of mistakes that De Ligt has been mocked for making at Juventus.
He has conceded a string of penalties for handballs during his time at the club, particularly during those early struggles.
De Ligt’s clumsiness has been a problem. He is heavy-footed and doesn’t always turn freely when it comes to lateral and sudden movement.
On the other hand, De Ligt is physically a monster for his age. He has the strength and the bravery of a lion, always prepared to put his body on the line.
He is excellent in the air, strong in the tackle and he reads the game well. As a product of the Ajax system, he is comfortable pressing and in a high defensive line. He also holds the line brilliantly.
Contrary to some claims, he is pretty quick too once he gets going in a sprint.
His distribution certainly could improve, though, as could his medium and long-range passing.
The Dutchman is at his best when he is competing and challenging for the 50-50s, and it remains to be seen whether that will suit the fast-paced nature of the Bundesliga.
A transfer will probably do him good though. While he had his best season at Juventus under Max Allegri in 2021-22, the Bianconeri are a club in transition. Allegri is also a defensive-minded coach who is not famed for developing young players.
It would've been difficult for De Ligt to show his best in a Juventus team that is full of holes and has declined so badly in recent years – finishing fourth in successive seasons.
Having said that, is De Ligt any better now than he was when he left Ajax? The answer is probably no.
You can’t place the blame on that all on Juventus being in crisis. Even in the Netherlands there is a school of thought that De Ligt should not start for the national team at the World Cup.
It is also telling that in every season De Ligt played at Juventus, he did not make the Serie A Team of the Season. In fact, he was never even close to making it.
Set to turn 23 this summer, De Ligt is still a baby in defensive terms. Most defenders don’t peak and mature until they are around 28 or 29.
De Ligt also has all the potential to become a world-class defender. We didn’t see that world-class defender at Juventus but at Bayern he may be able to finally realise his potential.
