De Ligt branded a ‘League One player’ after troubled Man Utd start

Carlo Garganese

6 Oct 2024 10:58 BST
4 min read

Matthijs de Ligt, Man Utd, 2024/25 — © IMAGO

Matthijs de Ligt has been branded a ‘League One Player’ after his disastrous performance against Porto.

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De Ligt produced a horror performance as Man Utd collapsed from two goals up to narrowly avoid a 3-2 defeat in Portugal on Thursday evening.

The Dutch defender was to blame for two goals as Porto overturned a 2-0 deficit to lead 3-2, only for Harry Maguire to rescue a 3-3 draw in injury time of the Europa League clash.

Former Norway and Premier League striker Jan Age Fjortoft spoke harshly of De Ligt’s performance, saying at times he looked like a League One Player.

What did Fjortoft say?

“De Ligt is so hot and cold,” Fjortoft said on ESPN.

“There were times he was battling in the air and winning tackles, and then other times he looks like a League One player.

“No disrespect to League One players. And that is so sad to see.

“Because De Ligt is a good defender. But De Ligt and Martinez don’t communicate.”

De Ligt has had a difficult start to his Manchester United career after arriving this summer from Bayern Munich for an initial fee of €45 million, with a further €5m in potential add-ons.

United have leaked numerous goals, conceding three goals on three occasions already this season. They find themselves in 13th position in the Premier League and have failed to win both Europa League matches.

Manager Erik ten Hag is expected to be sacked if United lose to Aston Villa on Sunday.

De Ligt was one of two centre-backs to join Man Utd this summer, following the arrival of Lille wonderkid Leny Yoro, who is currently out injured.

United had been in talks to sign Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite for several months, although his high price tag was a problem and Man Utd turned their attention to De Ligt and Yoro.

Man Utd manager Erik ten Hag is a big fan of De Ligt having worked with him at Ajax.

During that time, De Ligt emerged as arguably the most promising young centre back in Europe before signing for Juventus in the summer of 2019.

However, he never lived up to his potential at Juve, who sold him to Bayern Munich in 2022.

De Ligt signed a five-year contract in Bavaria that runs until 2027 but he also struggled at times at Bayern.

This has led to him even being nicknamed the ‘Dutch Harry Maguire’ due to his occasional propensity for clumsy mistakes and a lack of speed when on the turn.