de Ligt, not Ligt. In this dutch name, the surname is, not Matthijs de Ligt ( dutch pronunciation : [ mɑˈtɛiz də ˈlɪxt ] ; born 12 August 1999 ) is a dutch professional football player who plays as a centre-back for Serie A club Juventus and the Netherlands national team. [ 3 ]
Reading: Matthijs de Ligt
On 21 September 2016, De Ligt made his debut for Ajax ‘s senior team in a cup game against Willem II. He scored from a corner after 25 minutes, making him the second-youngest goalscorer ever behind Clarence Seedorf. [ 4 ] On 24 May, he became the youngest musician ever ( 17 years and 285 days erstwhile ) to play in a major european final when he started against Manchester United in the 2017 UEFA Europa League Final. [ 5 ] On 17 December 2018, De Ligt won the Golden Boy award, becoming the first defender to win the prize. [ 6 ] The come season, he helped Ajax capture a domestic double and reach the semi-finals of the Champions League ; his performances earned him a move to Serie A slope Juventus, and saw him win the Kopa Trophy in 2019. He won the Serie A style during his first season with the Turin side. In 2017, De Ligt made his introduction for the Netherlands at the historic period of 17, making him the youngest musician to start for the national team since 1931. [ 7 ] He featured for the side at UEFA Euro 2020 .
Club career [edit ]
ajax [edit ]
De Ligt played for Ajax between 2008 and 2019. De Ligt joined the Ajax youth academy when he was 9 years previous from his local baseball club in Abcoude, just outside of Amsterdam. At beginning the coaches at the youth academy thought he was besides dense and out of condition, but he was given a chance to develop in the academy and went on to prove his choice. [ 8 ]
2016–17 : Jong Ajax and development [edit ]
He made his debut for Jong Ajax on 8 August 2016 in an Eerste Divisie game against FC Emmen, playing the full game. [ 9 ] During the season, De Ligt played in 17 matches for Jong Ajax. [ 10 ] On 21 September, De Ligt made his debut for Ajax ‘s elder team in a cup game against Willem II. He scored from a corner after 25 minutes, making him the second-youngest goalscorer ever behind Clarence Seedorf ; Ajax won the crippled 5–0. [ 4 ] On 24 October, Ajax announced through Twitter that De Ligt had been promoted to the senior squad. [ 11 ] De Ligt quickly established himself in the first gear team after being promoted and went on to play in 11 league matches and nine in the Europa League. [ 12 ] On 24 May, he became the youngest player ever ( 17 years and 285 days previous ) to play in a major european final when he started against Manchester United in the 2017 UEFA Europa League Final. [ 5 ]
2017–19 : discovery and captainship [edit ]
After the sale of Davinson Sánchez to Tottenham Hotspur in August 2017, De Ligt became a first team starter. He was named the youngest captain of Ajax in March 2018 after injury to club captain Joel Veltman. [ 13 ] De Ligt appeared in 37 matches in all competitions and scored three goals. He started in all of his 31 league matches and played 90 minutes in all but one of them ( he was substituted in the 33rd minute against Vitesse Arnhem due to an injury ). [ 12 ] Due to De Ligt ‘s performances for Ajax, he was linked with many of Europe ‘s top clubhouse. [ 14 ] On 17 December 2018, De Ligt won the Golden Boy prize, becoming the first defender to win the prize. [ 6 ] On 13 February 2019, De Ligt became the youngest ever captain in a Champions League knockout game at 19 years and 186 days old, in a game against Real Madrid. [ 15 ] On 27 February 2019, he played his hundredth official game for Ajax in a 0–3 Klassieker succeed against Feyenoord in the Dutch national cup, becoming the youngest Ajax musician ever to reach this milestone. [ 16 ] On 16 April 2019, De Ligt scored the winning goal in the Champions League quarter-final against Juventus to send Ajax on to the semi-finals of the competition for the first gear time since the 1996–97 version of the tournament. [ 17 ] [ 18 ] His goal besides saw him become the youngest dutch player to score in the smasher stages since Nordin Wooter in 1996 and the second-youngest ever defender to score after Joël Matip. [ 19 ]
Juventus [edit ]
De Ligt with Juventus blocking a shot against Lokomotiv Moscow during the 2019–20 season On 18 July 2019, De Ligt signed for Serie A champions Juventus on a five-year narrow for a fee of €75 million, to be paid in five annual installments, with extra costs of €10.5 million. [ 20 ] He made his official debut for the clubhouse in a 4–3 home gain over Napoli in Serie A on 31 August. [ 21 ] On 3 November, he scored his first for the golf club in a 1–0 off win over cross-city rivals Torino in the Derby della Mole. [ 22 ] [ 23 ]
Read more: S.S. Lazio
International career [edit ]
On 25 March 2017, De Ligt made his introduction for the Dutch national team in a 2–0 away defeat to Bulgaria in a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification match. National team coach, Danny Blind, called De Ligt up for the national team despite having only started two league games for Ajax. At the long time of 17, he became the youngest player to start for the national team since 1931. [ 7 ] During the UEFA Nations League, De Ligt started and played 90 minutes in all four group matches against Germany and France as the Netherlands won the group and qualified for the inaugural address Nations League Finals. [ 24 ] In the semi-finals on 5 June, he scored a header against England as his team secured a touch in the final examination, [ 25 ] where the Netherlands would be defeated 0–1 by Portugal. [ 26 ] On 27 June 2021, he was sent off for handball in the UEFA Euro 2020 rung of 16 against Czech Republic, in which the Netherlands later conceded two goals and were eliminated from the rival. [ 27 ]
style of play [edit ]
De Ligt is considered by pundits to be among the most highly regard young prospects in world football, as demonstrated by his victory in the 2018 Golden Boy award, which is assigned to the most impressive unseasoned player in european football. [ 28 ] [ 29 ] Having played as an attacking midfielder in his young person, [ 30 ] De Ligt is both a physical and technically give right-footed centre-back, [ 31 ] [ 32 ] who is known for his clean harness, anticipation, marking, stature, strength, amphetamine and accurate passing, which enables him to start attacking plays from the back ; furthermore, his stature allows him to be a major menace from set pieces, whilst his strength means that he is improbable to be pushed off the ball, particularly in antenna duels. [ 32 ] [ 33 ] [ 34 ] [ 35 ] His play style is frequently compared to that of Barcelona defender Gerard Piqué ; [ 36 ] [ 37 ] he has besides been likened to Jan Vertonghen, due to his “ similar forward surges, a proclivity to create an extra man in midfield, and calmness on the ball, ” and to compatriot Ronald Koeman, courtesy of his “ herculean shot and consistency strength. ” [ 38 ] A 2019 UEFA.com profile described De Ligt with the follow words : “ A natural leader, De Ligt is an elegant bipedal cardinal defender. Dominant in the air, he is blessed with military capability, fine distribution and composure, and is able to play out from the rear thanks to his confidence in self-control, while his intelligent put helps him deny pacy forwards. With his ability to read the game, he could even play in midfield. His leadership besides stands him out : he was 18 when he was made Ajax skipper. ” [ 38 ] That same year, Paul Wilkes of The Independent besides noted that “ De Ligt ’ s ability to play out from the back and organise his mate teammates are valuable commodities in a time when the miss of quality defenders has been highlighted. ” [ 39 ] early Liverpool and England defender Jamie Carragher praised De Ligt for his “ forcible attributes ” and “ leadership qualities ”. Furthermore, Carragher went on to say he plays “ like he ‘s 24 or 25 ” indicating adulthood and lastingness. [ 40 ] [ 41 ] [ 42 ] Former Netherlands centre-back Jaap Stam said De Ligt : “ He ‘s get composure on the ball, he ‘s aggressive tactically, he sees the game, he reads the game well and he ‘s got that driving impel for himself ampere well in what you need to achieve and where you want to go to. ” [ 38 ] Upon signing with Juventus, one of the cabaret ‘s erstwhile managers, Marcello Lippi, alternatively said of the defender ‘s precocious performances : “ I ‘ve seen enough of greats, like Alessandro Nesta, Franco Baresi, Paolo Maldini, Ciro Ferrara, Fabio Cannavaro, and Marco Materazzi. I ‘ve never seen anyone like that at his senesce. ” [ 38 ] In 2019, Giacomo Chiuchiolo described De Ligt as a “ arrant ” and talented young defender, noting that although he is not exceptionally immediate, he possesses excellent position and an ability to read the game, among his other technical and physical qualities. [ 43 ] Despite his endowment, however, he has come under criticism at times in the media for being inconsistent, due to his inclination to commit periodic lapses or errors, although his Juventus defensive teammate Leonardo Bonucci has stated that he believes that De Ligt will overcome these weaknesses with prison term, as he matures and gains more have with long time, and successfully adapts to the team ‘s new defensive scheme under director Maurizio Sarri, who uses a zonal system quite than man–to–man marking. [ 44 ]
personal life [edit ]
De Ligt is in a relationship with Dutch model Annekee Molenaar. [ 45 ] On 8 January 2021, de Ligt tested positive for COVID-19 amid its pandemic in Italy ; [ 46 ] he recovered by 23 January. [ 47 ]
career statistics [edit ]
baseball club [edit ]
- As of match played 23 November 2021[3]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club
Season
League
National Cup[a]
Europe
Other
Total
Division
Apps
Goals
Apps
Goals
Apps
Goals
Apps
Goals
Apps
Goals
Jong Ajax
2016–17
Eerste Divisie
17
1
—
—
—
17
1
Ajax
2016–17
Eredivisie
11
2
3
1
9[b]
0
—
23
3
2017–18
Eredivisie
33
3
2
0
4[c]
0
—
39
3
2018–19
Eredivisie
33
3
5
1
17[d]
3
—
55
7
Total
77
8
10
2
30
3
0
0
117
13
Juventus
2019–20
Serie A
29
4
4
0
6[d]
0
0
0
39
4
2020–21
Serie A
27
1
4
0
5[d]
0
0
0
36
1
2021–22
Serie A
9
1
0
0
5[d]
0
0
0
14
1
Total
65
6
8
0
16
0
0
0
89
6
Career total
159
15
18
2
46
3
0
0
223
20
International [edit ]
- As of match played 16 November 2021[3]
National team
Year
Apps
Goals
Netherlands
2017
3
0
2018
10
0
2019
10
2
2020
0
0
2021
10
0
Total
33
2
- Scores and results list the Netherlands’ goal tally first, score column indicates score after each de Ligt goal.
Honours [edit ]
Ajax
Juventus
Netherlands
Individual
References [edit ]
Read more: Sevilla FC