Manchester United sign failed Bayern Munich defence duo Matthijs De Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui
JAKARTA - Manchester United managed to buy a duo of Bayern Munich defenders, Matthijs De Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui. However, MU had to spend money to get players who failed at Bayern.
De Ligt achieved great success while still playing in Ajax Amsterdam which was handled by Erik ten Hag. He, in fact, is said to be the Dutch center-back. Very convincing prediction because he is not even 20, he is already Ajax captain.
But when he moved to Juventus in 2019, De Ligt failed to shine in the Italian Serie A. However, he helped bring Juve to win the Italian Serie A title, Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana before moving to Bayern in 2022.
De Ligt became part of Bayern when he won the German Bundesliga title in 2023. It's just that, again. he even dimmed. Bayern coach Vincent Kompany was happy to release De Ligt. Moreover, Bayern got a pretty good offer for the sale of this 24-year-old defender.
Yes, MU is willing to pay 45 million euros plus add-ons or bonuses based on the club's appearance and achievements of 5 million euros. The price is not cheap for players Bayern want to throw away because they are considered a failure.
Not only that, Bayern are getting more and more happy because Mazraoui was also bought by MU. Even the full back of the Morocco national team still sells 15 million euros plus 5 million euros as a bonus for the player's appearance.
Both were not played when Bayern tried out against Tottenham Hotspur, Saturday, August 10, 2024. This is a strong signal that they will be released by the club. And, MU finally hooked up the two players.
According to journalist who is also a transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, as quoted by The Sun, the two players will undergo medical tests on Monday, August 12, 2024 local time. Both De Ligt and Mazraoui were both awarded a five-year contract and an additional 12-month option.
Only Te Hag has not been able to confirm whether the two defenders have officially become part of the MU squad. Da hopes that the problems that hinder the transfer of players can be resolved soon.
"I can't say [about De Ligt and Mazraoui transfers]. If there is news, we will definitely convey it. For now, we rely on existing players," said Ten Hag.
"Obviously we have a problem but we are trying hard to fix it. Players are trying to be able to play and medical staff are trying hard to carry out their duties," he said.
If Ligt and Mazraoui join, then they will have a reunion with Ten Hag. In addition, the two of them followed the former Ajax players who had already come to Old Trafford such as Leandro Martinez and Anthony.
Including goalkeeper Andre Onana who first joined Inter Milan when he left Ajax. From Inter, he just moved to MU.
It's just that almost all the former Ajax players failed to shine at MU. One of them is Donny van de Beek who was loaned to other clubs before being bought by Girona.
Even De Ligt's purchase received strong criticism from the legend of The Red Devils Paul Schholes. According to him, MU pays dearly for a defender whose quality is below average.
How could I not, defender Eric Dier alone could be the coach's choice to play rather than De Ligt. Ironic that Dier is already stuck at Tottenham and shining again when joining Bayern.
"Manchster United will bring players who are difficult to join the team. In Bayern alone, he rarely plays. This is my concern. Even an Eric Dier can be chosen to play rather than him," said Schholes.
"Juventus took him and it turned out he wasn't good enough. He wasn't good enough at Bayern either. Now, he comes to United like a defender with substandard quality. And now you spend 40-50 million just because you have trained him three or four years ago," he said.