De Ligt to Juventus Broken Down



On July 18, Ajax FC center-back Matthijs De Ligt chose to sign with the reigning Serie A champions Juventus for a deal worth $95.5 million. The 19-year old Dutch defender was arguably the most coveted prospect in all of European club football. After having a breakout campaign at Ajax in which he became the youngest captain of the club at age 19, secured a domestic double with wins in the Dutch Ervidersie and Dutch Cup, beat Real Madrid and Juventus in the Champions League knockout rounds, and made it all the way to UCL semi-finals before falling to Tottenham. De Ligt’s skill on the ball and in set pieces is only matched by his countryman, Virgil Van Djik of Liverpool, the favorite for this year's Ballon D’or. After the speculation that De Ligt would follow his Ajax teammate and fellow young Dutch prospect, Frenkie De Jong, to Barcelona and after rumors that De Ligt would be the cornerstone of Manchester United’s rebuild, he chose the Italian giants. Out of all the clubs that play in the Champions League, he chose the Black and Whites. Why?

Juventus are about to be a different team this year. Their roster has a depth that is only comparable to the depth of Manchester City. This summer, Juventus added CMs Aaron Ramsey and Adrien Rabiot; CBs Merih Demiral, Luca Pellegrini, and now the wonderkid De Ligt. The Italian champs continue to add to their depth in the hope of hoisting the Champions League trophy. It helps to have strength in numbers in all areas of the pitch, yet Juve will be shouldering the expectations that this squad will finally get them to the UCL Final again. De Ligt is expected to play a major part in this quest, but he is joining a roster with Giorgio Chilleni and Leonardo Bonucci already locked in the Starting XI. It’s unlikely De Ligt will start come opening match day in Italy. Juve didn’t even need De Ligt, but he wanted to be there. He gives Juve a major boost in defensive depth and set pieces that has the potential to propel the club toward a success UCL campaign. He choose Juve because they have a win-now attitude and they have perhaps the best chance of claiming glory in continental play. 

Obviously, Chilleni will have to retire and De Ligt is probably going to be his successor. There is certainly a lot of appeal of joining Juventus over other clubs: the chance to play with Cristiano Ronaldo, a club that dominates domestic completions annually and wins trophies, and qualifies for Champions League every year. Sure, Juve is a great club, but they have shown that their dominance in Italy doesn’t always translate on the continental stage. De Ligt ended Juve’s UCL run this year in the quarterfinals as a member of Ajax, one of the biggest upsets last season. Now, he is part of a team that is entering a new era and he will be the cornerstone of it all. The window for Juve's chances of capturing the Champions League trophy is starting to close. They will need to get the best out of their aging stars like Ronaldo, Chilleni, and Bonucci while they are still in good form. If the Italian giants want to win the trophy they have been longing for since 1995, De Ligt will have to defy expectations and be the defensive stalwart like he was at Ajax. The clock is ticking on Juve's chances to win the Champions League; but I wonder whether De Ligt is ready to handle the pressure. 

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