Matthijs de Ligt arrived at Manchester United in the summer of 2024 in a double swoop that included fellow Bayern Munich defender Noussair Mazraoui.
Born in Leiderdorp, a town near the Dutch city of Leiden, De Ligt took his first footballing steps in the youth setup of FC Abcoude, on the outskirts of Amsterdam, in 2005 and remained there for four years.
Nearby Ajax were alerted to his talents in 2009 and brought him into their world-renowned academy system, where he would stay for the next decade, going on to make his first-team debut just three months after his 17th birthday.
Later that season, he became the youngest player ever to start a European club final, when Ajax took on United in the 2017 Europa League showpiece in Stockholm.
The centre-back had quickly become a key squad member, so much so that he was handed the captaincy at the age of 18 by Erik ten Hag, making him the youngest player to take the armband for the club.
Speaking in 2019, Ten Hag said: “I don’t know if De Ligt has shown 60 to 80 per cent of his potential, but we are talking about one of the best defenders in Europe.
“I have no doubt that he will soon be number one in this position.”
The defender, who stands at six feet two inches tall, was widely touted as one of the hottest prospects in world football and a move to Italian giants Juventus followed.
He won the Scudetto during a three-year spell at the Old Lady, before transferring to German behemoths Bayern Munich, where he also lifted a league title.
A senior Netherlands international since 2017, De Ligt has represented his country at the World Cup and European Championship and brings a wealth of experience to Manchester, despite his still relatively young age.
