Manchester City To Splash Out £76m For Juventus Defender: What Could He Bring To The Club?

In a recent report, the Italian outlet Tutto Juve stated that Manchester City are ready to offer £76m for Juventus Defender Matthijs De Ligt. It is understood that the Citizens have no shortage of resources since they can fund the transfer with the sale of Nathan Ake for £38m and Gabriel Jesus for £51m.

De Ligt’s Impressive Campaign For The Old Lady Last Season

De Ligt had a solid campaign at the Allianz Stadium producing several dominant displays in the defensive third of the field. The 37-time Netherlands international managed to score three goals and grabbed an assist over 42 appearances in the last campaign across all competitions.

The former Ajax star performed exceptionally to average 1.1 tackles, 0.8 interceptions and 3.1 clearances per game in Serie A. He was also impressive when distribution from the back, completing 88.9% of his attempted passes in the Italian first division (stats via whoscored).

What Could De Ligt Bring To Manchester City?

The Dutch centre-back has been an integral part of Massimiliano Allegri’s backline due to his defensive awareness and reliability to win the ball back from the opposition. De Ligt has a strong presence at the defensive third of the pitch and can make a few solid tackles to stop his opponents in their tracks.

With a tall frame of 1.89m, the 22-year-old powerhouse can dominate his opponents during aerial battles and doesn’t hesitate in throwing his body on the line to block an inbound shot. He would prove to be a brilliant addition to the Sky Blues as he can provide cover for Ruben Dias and Aymeric Laporte coming off the bench to impact the game when required.

Regular playtime would be the only hurdle that De Ligt might face since there remains a lot of competition in Guardiola’s defensive department at the Etihad Stadium. All in all, the Juventus defender would add more bite and steel to the Mancunian giants’ defence and Pep Guardiola would be wise to bring him in.