United dominator leaves doubters in the dust, no question that club was right to sign him – opinion

Some things are just meant to be and, when Matthijs de Ligt signed for Manchester United, there was a cosmic exhalation as the universe settled back down, normality resumed. United had been chasing the big Dutchman ever since his startling breakthrough at Ajax, for whom he first wore the captain’s armband aged just 18 before leading them to a league title the following year. Instead, De Ligt moved first to Juventus for €75m then to Bayern Munich for a similar fee before eventually rocking up at Old Trafford in 2024, seven years after making his first waves in the Netherlands and setting his inevitable United switch into motion. Two sides of the same coin The arrival of the big centre-back was less a football transfer than it was an exercise in framing narratives. Was this a case of De Ligt, a former boy wonder now proven at the highest level in two of Europe’s biggest leagues and ready for his latest big move? Or was it De Ligt, once a promising youngster who two of the biggest teams in the world wanted rid of with United taking a punt on a player palpably not good enough for the big stage? Having been bought and sold for nearly €200m over a relatively short career it was a valid consideration. But there was a grim predictability to how quickly the narrative nosedived towards negativity, with Paul Scholes slamming the player as “second-rate” during United’s pursuit of his signature. Earned his stripes De Ligt remained an easy target during his first season at the club – an Erik ten Hag nepo baby not up to the rigours of the Premier League, a lesser Harry Maguire. But much like the Englishman he was brought in to partner then succeed, his toys remained in his pram. With head down and sweat on his brow, the Dutchman showed the steely resolve that saw him captain Ajax to their first league title in five years when he was the same age as Ayden Heaven is now. It may not mean much in the grand scheme of his career, but being named United’s Player of the Month for November is a vindication of De Ligt’s grit, determination and class to tune out the media noise and turn up for the club. Key player And in so doing, he has proved himself to truly be a United player. Is it any wonder, considering he racked up over 300 appearances for Ajax, Juventus and Bayern? The player’s vast reserves of experience are a matter of historical fact, but he would hardly have hit that many senior matches by the age of 24 if there wasn’t something about him. It’s fair to say that it took a while for that something to fully emerge at Old Trafford, but this season he has broadly been imperious and is now getting the credit he deserves. An ever-present in United’s back three until injury ruled him out of their last two matches, the Dutchman hasn’t even been victim to Ruben Amorim’s obsessive in-game tinkering with his backline. Bright future United’s defence is demonstrably less sturdy without De Ligt at its heart, and he is already being talked of as a future captain. In a season of bewildering mediocrity, it’s easy to grasp at the faintest wisp of positivity, but it’s impossible to argue with the quality shown by the 26-year-old on the pitch and off it. United’s squad is full of players operating with claustrophobically low ceilings but De Ligt has shown what he can do and, more importantly, what he is capable of. Suddenly the Dutchman has seized control of his own narrative and left certain commentators feeling very silly indeed. Featured image Alex Livesey via Getty Images The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Joe Ponting Joe has spent more than half his life writing about football and all of it following United. As a child he told a doctor his name was ‘Paul Scholes’, but could never pick a pass like him no matter how much he tried. He cut his teeth working in print media for local newspapers and entered football journalism covering the grassroots game for the Non-League Paper. Here he achieved a career high, interviewing United legend Sir Bobby Charlton to get his views on the lower echelons of the football pyramid. To kill time during international breaks Joe writes album reviews and has strong views on post punk for Plus One Magazine.