Manchester United got the Premier League 2024-25 season underway with a win over Fulham on the road riding on a winner from new boy Joshua Zirkzee to clinch a 1-0 triumph.
The club, which is in search of its first English domestic title in over a decade, has a rather new atmosphere surrounding the Theatre of Dreams, which seemed literally and figuratively ‘leaky’ in recent times.
While appalling images of the storied Old Trafford’s structural weaknesses surfaced last year, what was equally irksome was the team’s poor defense.
Once a force to be reckoned with, and the contingent that hampered opposition players with nightmares ahead of their visit to the Theatre of Dreams, the United defence has slipped off its high standing in recent years, and has seemed even more in vain since the departure of goalkeeper extraordinaire David De Gea.
With the jury still out on the new shot-stopper Andre Onana, who has delivered varying performances through the course of his time so far in England, what was certain from a casual look back at the highlight reels from the season past was the necessity of the English giants to improve their defensive line, vastly.
The side have done well in the transfer market as they roped in Dutch defenders Matthijs de Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui and French youngster Leny Yoro to strengthen their backline.
The signings look like a step up from French veteran Raphael Varane, who departed English shores for a switch to Italian side Como, and a much-required addition to a shaky defence that at times even appeared shambolic.
Varane, a stalwart of the art of defending in his heyday, came in with a lot of promise at a time when the team needed a leader but was past his prime and it showed time and again during his tenure in Red. The World Cup winner who had helped Real Madrid to an array of UEFA Champions League titles was no longer the force he was when he racked up to Manchester, and hence an upgrade was direly required.
United, following the boardroom, changes that the club went through over the last couple of months, have opted for a strong contender to lead the backline in De Ligt as the Dutchman appears to fit the bill perfectly.
Strong, fast, good with the ball at his feet, equipped with a respectful range of passing for a centre back and most importantly calm under pressure. Some of the qualities that Erik Ten Hag’s United require from a stopper back given the current circumstances, and the 25-year-old Ducthman ticks every box.
And what’s more, De Ligt led the awe-inspiring Ajax team which made the semifinal of the UCL in the year 2021, at the tender age of 19, under the tutelage of none other than Dutch tactician Ten Hag.
De Ligt, who was touted to grab all the headlines going forward from that memorable European campaign has found it hard to live up to the massive expectations pinned on him despite moves to Italian giants Juventus and a subsequent switch to German heavyweights Bayern Munich.
However, it can’t all be drawn down to the young Dutch defender alone as he has lacked a constant support system, so to speak, with the stopper back starting each of his previous five seasons under new managers.
Considering the growth trajectory of a young, impressionable centre-back requires a more assuring figure to back up his development on and off the field, he has been rather hamstrung in that aspect.
Now, back under the watchful eye of the man who placed immense faith on the young shoulders of the Dutchman, which he repaid with aplomb, De Ligt could regain his mojo and thrive at the highest level of club football, which would also be beneficial to the side in search of a return to glory days.
Still only 25 and with the best part of his career ahead of him, De Ligt seems to have all the requirements and specifications to get his train to stardom back on track, while also doing the fabled English club a solid in the process.
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