Rio Ferdinand's concern over Matthijs de Ligt echoed by Man Utd hero after medical

Louis Saha has admitted he has doubts over Manchester United’s move for Matthijs de Ligt, pointing out the defender’s inconsistent performances since his departure from Ajax. The Red Devils are reportedly on the brink of securing the Dutch international’s services from Bayern Munich in a hefty £42million deal, aiming to plug the gap left by Raphael Varane’s absence in defence.

However, ex-United striker Saha is sceptical about the acquisition of De Ligt, who hasn’t quite hit the heights expected of him at Juventus and Bayern.

In a conversation with CSDB, Saha expressed his reservations: “Matthijs de Ligt is a confident player and a leader in his own right, but he has struggled to maintain his form in the years since leaving Ajax.

“Having said that, I think the Premier League is a good fit for him and it will provide him that extra motivation to get back to his very best.”

He added: “There is also the surprise element of having him come from abroad so strikers might not know how to play against him.”

Saha isn’t alone in his concerns. Legendary United defender Rio Ferdinand has also aired his doubts regarding de Ligt’s potential impact at Old Trafford.

“He’s had a lot of injuries, hasn’t started many games over the last two or three years and Man United are spending £45-50m on him,” Ferdinand explained.

“Is he going to come into Man United and make a difference? I think it’s a big ask for him and all eyes are going to be on him.

“Big pressure, big opportunity for him, but there’s a lot of uncertainty I think with this signing because of his previous seasons with two big clubs not going as well as we’d have anticipated.”

The 25-year-old rose through the ranks at Ajax before penning his first professional contract with the club in 2016.

After making 117 appearances, he was lured away by Juventus in 2019 and remained a key figure for the Serie A side until Bayern swooped in 2022.

De Ligt featured in all but three Bundesliga matches in the 2022/23 season but only managed 22 league appearances for the German giants in the most recent campaign.

The Netherlands international missed 42 days due to an inner knee ligament tear from November and sat out three games between April and May due to another ligamental injury.

Adding to the complications, recent acquisition Leny Yoro sustained a foot injury during a pre-season friendly against Arsenal at the end of last month, which means that the star centre-half will be out of action for approximately three months.

United shelled out an initial £52million for the 18-year-old this summer but were compelled to explore other options for their defence while he recuperates.

De Ligt and his Bayern teammate Noussair Mazraoui reportedly completed their medicals at Carrington on Monday as part of a double deal worth around £60m.