Serie A champions Juventus have finally completed the transfer that their fans had been waiting for all summer, Ajax central defender Matthijs de Ligt joins the Bianconeri in a deal worth 67.5 million pounds. The 19-year-old Dutch international, who had also been linked with Manchester United, Barcelona and Paris St-Germain, has signed a five-year contract with the defending Serie A champions. Juventus issued a statement saying that the transfer fee was payable over five years, with additional costs around 9 million pounds.
Matthijs de Ligt is probably the best young central defender in Europe, and Juventus have been very keen on signing him. De Ligt made his debut for Ajax in 2016, when he was just 17 years old and even scored a goal on his first ever match with the senior team. In 2017 Ajax sold central defender Davinson Sanchez to Tottenham and that was De Ligt's chance to become a first-team regular. He made the most out of the opportunity, scoring 3 goals in 37 appearances in all competitions during the 2017-2018 season and becoming the youngest ever captain of the club.
Last season De Ligt was an essential player in the exceptional performances that Ajax have put on in the UEFA Champions League. De Ligt even scored the winning goal for Ajax in the quarter-final match against Juventus, and that was probably the moment that persuaded the Bianconeri to insist for his transfer. He has also managed to break into the set up of the Dutch senior national team, scoring two goals in 17 appearances so far.
The signing of Matthijs de Ligt is part of a very ambitious summer for Juventus, who are desperate to land their first Champions League trophy since 1996. The Dutch defender is the seventh signing of the summer after Adrien Rabiot, Aaron Ramsey and Gianluigi Buffon have been brought in on free transfers, Luca Pellegrini joined from Roma, Merih Demiral arrived from Sassuolo, and Cristian Romero was signed from Genoa.
Juventus have won the last eight editions of the Serie A and they are 4/9 at Bet365 to win the title again next season.
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Comments (1)
sharpe
07/30/19, 04:07:22 PM
The de Ligt transfer is for me just another proof of how good Juventus dealt on the transfer market and not only this transfer window but for the last few years. In...
The de Ligt transfer is for me just another proof of how good Juventus dealt on the transfer market and not only this transfer window but for the last few years. In him you've got a star center back and a leader for the next over a decade and on that perspective the amount Juventus have paid for him looks quite insignificant. All European top sides were after him but the fact juventus got him just prove they have the ambition to dominate not only in Italy but in Europe in the next years.
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