Matthijs De Ligt
19-year-old Dutch sensation and Ajax captain Matthijs de Ligt is the subject of interest from Manchester City and Barcelona, claims The Independent.
The youngster featured alongside Virgil van Dijk for The Netherlands in the heart of the defence as the Orange Brigade thrashed Germany 3-0 in the UEFA Champions League. The 19-year-old has been making a name for himself over the past couple of seasons with his consistent performances at the back for the Dutch giants.
De Ligt is not the Ajax academy graduate who has emerged on the radar of numerous Premier League clubs, with Frenkie de Jong also attracting interest. Justin Kluivert was another sensation who was linked with a move to Manchester United (h/t Guardian) in the summer but later moved to the Serie A with AS Roma.
Undoubtedly, Manchester City have a star-studded squad and have enough quality to challenge the big names of European football. The Sky Blues have made a wonderful start to the season in the Premier League and sit atop the standings, tied on points with Chelsea and Liverpool.
Barring the odd slip-up in the Champions League where they lost 2-1 to Lyon on matchday one, Pep Guardiola’s men have looked a formidable unit. In fact, they are still the favourites to retain their Premier League crown.
The Citizens are not short of quality defenders in their ranks. They already boast of names like John Stones, Aymeric Laporte, Nicolas Otamendi and Vincent Kompany, all of whom have played their part effectively this season.
However, they should be concerned about Vincent Kompany’s future. The 32-year-old Belgian has fallen out of favour under Guardiola and his involvement in the Premier League has been limited to only three appearances so far, one of which was an injury-time substitute appearance against Newcastle.
The Belgian will be out of contract next summer and clearly, injuries have taken a toll on his body since his reflexes are not the same as they were five years ago.
As things stand, Manchester City will need another top-quality centre-back and they might strike gold by signing Matthijs de Ligt.
The 19-year-old has a good technique which allows him to be comfortable in possession. A good passer of the ball, de Ligt excels with his ball distribution skills and has the ability to set up attacks from the back with intelligent passes. In fact, he averages 65.6 passes per game with a success percentage of 91.5, implying that he is an excellent ball-playing centre-back.
His tackling and game-reading abilities have also improved and he has averaged 0.9 tackles and 1.3 interceptions per game this season. Those figures might not be appealing but he has managed to get the job done at the back, averaging 4.9 clearances so far.
The Dutchman also has good positional sense and situational awareness and rarely lets the team down with lapses in concentration. His decision-making is also expected to improve as he continues his development.
However, the most impressive thing about him is his aerial ability, making him a potent threat in both penalty boxes. He has the ability to time his jumps to perfection and is adept at beating the opposition in the air.
Hence, Manchester City should not hesitate to splash the cash on this young Dutch sensation as he would be the ideal replacement for the ageing Vincent Kompany.