Matthijs de Ligt joined the Manchester United ranks earlier this week, and was thrust into Premier League action as he made his debut in the opening-day win over Fulham on Friday evening.
De Ligt, an 81st-minute substitute in the Reds’ 1-0 win at Old Trafford, had his transfer from Bayern Munich confirmed on Tuesday – making the switch from Bavaria to Manchester alongside fellow defender Noussair Mazraoui.
Before entering the limelight at the Theatre of Dreams for the first time, De Ligt sat down with club media to discuss his career so far, spending time at some of Europe’s biggest clubs, the United sides he watched growing up and working with Erik ten Hag – plus, of course, plenty more.
It’s a compelling watch, but we’ve picked out some of our new no.4’s most interesting responses – so keep reading for more from the towering defender…
THE AURA OF UNITED
There’s a lot of history in this club. I mean, I grew up with the team of United of Cristiano Ronaldo, Vidic, Ferdinand, Wayne Rooney, Paul Scholes, Edwin van der Sar, the Dutchman. There is so much history in this club and I’m now speaking about 20 years ago. But even more [further back] when they won the Champions League, the Treble… it’s such a big, historic club. You can feel this already, it’s in the air here. I haven’t seen the stadium yet, but I think if I go there it’s also like you can breathe the history. It’s just amazing that I can be a part now of this club.
WORKING WITH ERIK
He [Erik ten Hag] has played a big part [in my development], to be fair. He was the first trainer who made me captain. I was 18 years old, and he just gave me so much confidence. He told me right from the start: ‘You are an example for the team, and I want you to be captain.’ I would never have expected that at that moment, but it was such a great honour. Just the confidence he gave me at that time, at that age, was really special.
DEVELOPING SINCE THE EUROPA LEAGUE FINAL
It’s been a long time ago. It was 2017 [United beat De Ligt's Ajax 2-0], I think. Unfortunately for me, we lost! But it was an amazing experience. I was 17-years-old at that time, so obviously I gained a lot of experience. As you are young, you are taking a little bit more risks probably. You find your way into the football world. Seven years later, I can tell that I gained a lot of experience. I played for amazing clubs, played with amazing players, and hopefully I can help, with this experience, the players that are here, and to win trophies for this club.
LEARNING FROM THE BEST
I think from everybody, you learn something. Cristiano [a team-mate of De Ligt’s at Juventus] has been here and made a big, big history here. He takes care of his body like a temple… the way he treats his body, the way he eats, the way he sleeps, it’s such a big example for young players like me. Chiellini, Bonucci, they were like defensive masters. They knew exactly the game, they knew exactly what to do in certain moments, how to defend in the box, how to defend outside the box. They are so smart, so clever.
In Bayern, I played with Neuer, with Muller… serial winners who’ve won everything, like the World Cup, the Champions League, the Bundesliga, everything. Just looking at these guys and learning certain things from them, it’s always so valuable. Beside they are amazing players, they are above all also amazing human beings.
I think that’s the most important thing, besides being an amazing football player, also being a really good and kind human being. Because I think, in the end, that makes also the group and the team special. If you have a good group… obviously you can say the truth to each other, but also have a good connection together. That’s a lot of things that I learned from them.
WHY I’VE JOINED UNITED
I actually really like the project. I think besides that they are an amazing club, like one of the biggest clubs in the world, with an amazing history, a lot of amazing players, amazing defenders, to have the chance to play for this club, in this competition… It's always nice to go somewhere and to feel that you're part of a new project, to feel that you're part of something new. Hopefully me, but also the other players that are coming now this summer, can give a great piece to the next history of Manchester United and to get the club back where it belongs: on top.