ONE of Man Utd manager Erik ten Hag’s biggest headaches has been fixing their leaky defence.
Argentine World Cup winner Lisandro Martinez missed most of the season with injury, which left the team bereft of dominant players.
Raphael Varane, for all of his experience, never really rose to the challenge of the Premier League, Harry Maguire fell out of favour and Jonny Evans is very much in the twilight of his career.
Young French defender Willy Kambwala was given his opportunities but he has since moved to Villarreal this summer.
No surprise then that United moved quickly to secure one of the most promising young central defenders in football with the signing of Lenny Yoro for £62mfrom Lille.
Unfortunately Yoro has already picked up an injury in preseason
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He has been ruled out for three months after undergoing surgery on his left foot.
Signing one player, even one with the potential of Yoro, will not be enough for United in this window, however, and they have been highly linked with the 24-year-old Dutch international Matthijs de Ligt.
Despite still not being anywhere near his peak years De Ligt has built considerable experience so far in his career with Ajax, Juventus and Bayern Munich and he has 45 caps at senior level for the Dutch national team.
While he is not necessarily a highly modern ball playing type of defensive player he is a player with the defensive strengths and instincts to help shore up a United defence that was, at best, leaky last season.
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In this article we will break down some of the key aspects of De Ligt’s game.
Reading of the game
One of the biggest issues that we saw from the United defensive unit last season was that they were constantly having to react to threats.
They struggled to be proactive and aggressive defensively and their reading of the game, of lack of it, meant that they were constantly trying to recover their position and defend at the last minute.
This form of defending terms to be last ditch and not organised and as a result it will increase the chance that you concede a goal.
De Ligt is a defender with very good defensive instincts.
He isn’t a player that will dribble out from the back line or routinely play ‘flashy’ diagonal passes to switch the play but defensively he will read the threat and react in terms of his positioning before the opposition can take advantage of any spaces in the defensive line.
In this sense he is something of a throwback as a young central defender with the capacity to defend proactively and solidly.
The fact that De Ligt moved from Ajax to Juventus, for £85m in 2019, allowed him to further learn and develop the defensive side of his game.
He developed his ability to play effectively as a defender in a set defensive block either deep or medium and he became stronger in direct defensive duels in 1v1 situations.
Having a defender that is comfortable and capable of either defending in space when he is isolated or as part of a set defensive block.
This kind of flexibility and ability to quickly adapt to different situations defensively is something that was sorely missing from the defensive unit that United had last season without Martinez, who has a similar profile and skill set to De Ligt.
The signing of a player like De Ligt would improve the defensive unit at United without a doubt.
1v1 Defending
While De Ligt is a player with good defensive instincts he is also a defender who shows strength and intensity in his duels.
This is, in part, due to his ability to read the game and understand where the threat is likely to come from.
But from a technical perspective his defending is very good and he plays with a real sense of strength and intensity against the ball.
De Ligt is especially strong when it comes to using his size, strength and frame, to challenge in direct 1v1 duels as the opposition player is about to receive the ball.
He is very difficult to play against when a player is trying to receive the ball back to goal, he will use his strength to prevent the receiving player from being able to play on the turn.
He is strong in the tackle and he will challenge for and win aerial duels to prevent the opposition from being able to attack and create chances.
As a defender his positioning in deeper defensive positions also sees him effectively cover the penalty area and he defends the near post very well when the opposition are attacking down his side of the pitch.
This is another area in which United struggled last season.
Having a defender who not only thrives but enjoys the defensive side of the game would be a big upgrade for them
The signing of De Ligt, whether paired with Yoro or Martinez, would bring strength and consistency to the defensive unit for United.
Keeping things simple
As a central defender in the modern game there is a tendency to focus on ball playing ability.
The likes of John Stones, who steps into the midfield is seen as a profile and role that will bring a lot to your team.
In truth, however, the best sides at the moment in the Premier League have defenders who are comfortable defending and keeping things relatively simply.
Think the likes of William Saliba, at Arsenal, Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk, at Liverpool or even Ruben Dias at Manchester City.
De Ligt is a defender that has more in common with these players that he does with the likes of Stones.
This is not to say, however, that De Ligt is not a good player in possession of the ball.
He is comfortable with the ball at his feet, as we might expect from a player that developed and came through at Ajax, but he is a defender who is better when receiving the ball and keeping the game simple.
He tends to make good decisions in possession.
De Ligt is a good passer of the ball but he will not typically try to force the issue and instead he will keep the game simple.
He tends to move the ball safely to players who bring more in terms of creativity with their passing.
The same is true when it comes to carrying the ball.
De Ligt is comfortable enough when stepping forward in possession but he will not make long runs carrying the ball through traffic into the midfield.
Again, his decision-making is key.
We also have to acknowledge the fact that De Ligt has played for the United coach Eric ten Hag before, at Ajax, and as such Ten Hag will know that his fellow countryman is more than capable of playing and building the attack in the way that the coaching staff want
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Conclusion
The pursuit of Matthijs de Ligt makes perfect sense for United and for Ten Hag as a young defender who is still to reach his peak.
He has considerable experience at a high level and he understands the game model and system of play of the manager.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
