Dutch central defender Matthijs de Ligt, one of the most coveted young players in world football, signed on Thursday for Juventus from Ajax for a fee of €75 million plus add ons.
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The 19-year-old agreed a five-year contract. Juventus said in a statement the fee would be paid over five financial years, with “additional costs” of €10.5 million.
The combined fee makes De Ligt the world’s most expensive defender, surpassing the €84 million Liverpool paid to sign his the Netherlands teammate Virgil Van Dijk from Southampton in 2018.
De Ligt is Juventus’ third most expensive signing after the €105 million it paid to buy Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid in 2018 and the €90 million transfer of Gonzalo Higuain from Napoli in 2016. De Ligt has played 17 times for the Netherlands, forming a formidable central defensive partnership with Van Dijk. He took over the captain’s armband at Ajax in March 2018, making him the club’s youngest ever skipper.
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De Ligt said Ronaldo had urged him to join Juventus after the two faced each other for their countries in the Nations League final in June won by Portugal.