Matthijs de Ligt - Juventus Complete Signing of Dutch Defender

[Harry]

23 hours ago, Panna King said:

Barca was his preferred choice until Raiola made sure it would be impossible for him to go there.  Raiola even has fooled some of the most intelligent football people in the world.

Can you explain to me how this is the case? Railola represents a number of players and has sold to a number of clubs. What is the logic to if the player is from Ajax he will only sell them to Juventus?

9 hours ago, The Rebel CRS said:

I wouldn't even buy him anyway as for the first time in a decade, I think the defence needs work on the least. It's midfielders and attackers that are needed. 

Before the Liverpool game it was surprisingly the strongest part of the team last season. The players are there and all it comes down to is how they are organised. 

Not to mention I wouldn't touch any player who has Raiola as an agent. The fat greasy nonce looking cunt is more trouble than he's worth. Just look at all the nonsense with Ibrahomovic. It's not worth the bother at all, especially when you consider how he's a 19 year old kid, who is already demanding the wages that a top class more experienced player would. It's a terrible mentality for a young footballer to have and a lot of that is due to the influence of his fat agent. Not to mention, most of Riola's players become premadonnas. Just look at Pogba, he's the perfect example of a Raiola player. 

Well said. 

[Panna King]

33 minutes ago, Harry said:

Can you explain to me how this is the case? Railola represents a number of players and has sold to a number of clubs. What is the logic to if the player is from Ajax he will only sell them to Juventus?

Well said. 

Raiola sets up deals with Italian Clubs, mainly now with Juventus due to the relationship he had with Luciano Moggi, he gets paid a huge finders fee by the club, he had also the same agreement with AC Milan by Adriano Gallinai and Inter Milan several years back.   

[SirBalon]

47 minutes ago, Panna King said:

Raiola sets up deals with Italian Clubs, mainly now with Juventus due to the relationship he had with Luciano Moggi, he gets paid a huge finders fee by the club, he had also the same agreement with AC Milan by Adriano Gallinai and Inter Milan several years back.   

Hes just sold another two of his clients to Italian clubs over the past two days. The funny thing is that they can't stand Raiola in Italy.

[El Profesor]

On 28/06/2019 at 12:13, SirBalon said:

Everyone on this board has called for this and has expressed their personal disgust at the mere mention of his name especially if we go back to quote posts when Pogba moved to Man Utd. But right now it’s a whole different kettle of fish. 

Impression I got is that Barça never really flexed their muscle to sign De Ligt. They made it look like they were interested so the fans wouldn't criticize the board, and to shift the blame to Raiola. But  Barça don't really need and don't really want De Ligt. 

Their priority should be upfront. They neee to get rid of Coutinho, sign a player who can compete with Dembélé for a starting spot and to decide who will succeed Suárez.

[SirBalon]

1 hour ago, El Profesor said:

Impression I got is that Barça never really flexed their muscle to sign De Ligt. They made it look like they were interested so the fans wouldn't criticize the board, and to shift the blame to Raiola. But  Barça don't really need and don't really want De Ligt. 

Their priority should be upfront. They neee to get rid of Coutinho, sign a player who can compete with Dembélé for a starting spot and to decide who will succeed Suárez.

Well they’ve been seriously interested in de Ligt for well over two years now and were apparently on the verge of bringing him on two separate occasions (minus this present interest) in the last four years, the first time when he was 15.

Maybe you’re right although I get them on this one due to the other great young Ajax and Dutch international Frenkie de Jong coming in on exactly the same terms de Ligt was offered and agreed on principle.

De Jong was hours away from signing for PSG and Barcelona snatched him from their grasp with Juventus seriously interested too.

I think Barça found themselves in a bit of a predicament with this one due to the de Jong signing and personal terms agreed. They would’ve opened up a can of worms because both players have been the highlight of the Ajax and especially the Dutch rejuvenation.

Barcelona didn’t need him right now but they would’ve saved themselves a lot of money for when they do finally sign him in the future which was why he upset PSG so much on his final demands and the statement from Leonardo; “You haven’t even signed for PSG yet and you’re already negotiating your departure”.

It’s this particular detail amongst others but above all else that Dugarry was criticising so much. 

[Panna King]

The transfer of de Ligt will be official tomorrow after Ajax and Juventus have agreed a transfer fee.

[El Profesor]

So, who has the defence in Serie A?

Juventus: Chiellini - De Ligt - Bonucci

Milan: Romagnoli - Caldara - Musacchio

Inter: De Vrij - Godín - Skriniar

Napoli: Manolas - Koulibaly

 

[SirBalon]

1 hour ago, El Profesor said:

So, who has the defence in Serie A?

Juventus: Chiellini - De Ligt - Bonucci

Milan: Romagnoli - Caldara - Musacchio

Inter: De Vrij - Godín - Skriniar

Napoli: Manolas - Koulibaly

 

I'll give you my mixed best pairings 

1. Koulibaly - Godín
2. Chiellini - Musacchio
3. De Ligt - Bonucci
4. Caldara - Manolas
5. De Vrij - Skriniar

[Spike]

4 minutes ago, SirBalon said:

I'll give you my mixed best pairings 

1. Koulibaly - Godín
2. Chiellini - Musacchio
3. De Ligt - Bonucci
4. Caldara - Manolas
5. De Vrij - Skriniar

That wasn't the question though

[Dr. Gonzo]

2 hours ago, El Profesor said:

So, who has the defence in Serie A?

Juventus: Chiellini - De Ligt - Bonucci

Milan: Romagnoli - Caldara - Musacchio

Inter: De Vrij - Godín - Skriniar

Napoli: Manolas - Koulibaly

 

Juve does, but individually I think Koulibaly is the best of them

[SirBalon]

3 hours ago, Spike said:

That wasn't the question though

I couldn't answer the question so I went for something with the options instead. Just like I used to do in my math exams 

[Stan]

9 hours ago, El Profesor said:

So, who has the defence in Serie A?

Juventus: Chiellini - De Ligt - Bonucci

Milan: Romagnoli - Caldara - Musacchio

Inter: De Vrij - Godín - Skriniar

Napoli: Manolas - Koulibaly

 

 

8 hours ago, SirBalon said:

I'll give you my mixed best pairings 

1. Koulibaly - Godín
2. Chiellini - Musacchio
3. De Ligt - Bonucci
4. Caldara - Manolas
5. De Vrij - Skriniar

 

8 hours ago, Spike said:

That wasn't the question though

That's what I was thinking.

It's like asking who has the best strike partnership in the PL and choosing Aguero and Kane  

[SirBalon]

The latest developments on what looked a done deal for Matthijs de Ligt signing for Italian Champions Juventus is that according to SKY Italia both Ajax and Jive can't find common ground on what the transfer fee should be.

Juventus are offering €57m to be paid in instalments while Ajax Amsterdam are quoting what FC Barcelona put on the table in one lump sum of €75m which is how Ajax value him.

Juventus are apparently looking to sort this deal out within the FFP limits with what they have offered de Ligt on personal terms which is over double what Barça have oferred and that has limited what Juve can offer as a transfer fee. Juve are now searching for methods to finance the transfer deal.

More ro follow...

[Stan]

2 hours ago, SirBalon said:

The latest developments on what looked a done deal for Matthijs de Ligt signing for Italian Champions Juventus is that according to SKY Italia both Ajax and Jive can't find common ground on what the transfer fee should be.

Juventus are offering €57m to be paid in instalments while Ajax Amsterdam are quoting what FC Barcelona put on the table in one lump sum of €75m which is how Ajax value him.

Juventus are apparently looking to sort this deal out within the FFP limits with what they have offered de Ligt on personal terms which is over double what Barça have oferred and that has limited what Juve can offer as a transfer fee. Juve are now searching for methods to finance the transfer deal.

More ro follow...

How could it have been a done deal if the transfer wasn't even agreed?

[SirBalon]

38 minutes ago, Stan said:

How could it have been a done deal if the transfer wasn't even agreed?

Because the hard part is always player terms and conditions which have been agreed. Juve obviously thought they could play the pressure game with this if what Sky Italia are to be believed that the deal has been put on hold. To be honest, if the story is as it has been published, then the margin of difference is quite big which as far as I’m concerned is the strangest part.

It was common knowledge how much Barcelona had offered Ajax months ago. 

[SirBalon]

So, more information regarding the breaks that have been put on Matthijs de Ligt's transfer to Juventus.

In my last post I told about how Juventus had offered Ajax the sum of €57m. Well, more details have appeared on Juventus' offer to Ajax with exact numbers. Juve have offered Ajax €57m plus €10m in variables to be executed by the player throughout his first season which would take the sum's total to €67m and doesn't reach the stipulated amount Ajax are asking for which is €75m and what Barcelona agreed with Ajax back in March.

This gets even crazier for Juve if we go into further details. It appears that de Ligt's representative (agent), Mino Raiola will be paid by Juve a staggering amount of €11m which explains why Juventus are now caught between a rock and a hard place. That sends the total sum to €77m for Juve which is actually €2m more than what Ajax are asking for as a transfer fee for them and how they value de Ligt which at today's prices is quite a bargain considering his potential. But if Juve are to give in to all, then we are talking about a sum that arrives at €86m for Juventus which is far away from the €57m they can stretch themselves to.

Barça of course weren't willing to offer a single cent to Mino Raiola as they always expect the footballer to sort out payments for their agents (one of the reasons Raiola has never spoken kind words about Barça since the Ibrahimović signing where they refused to pay him anything) but it seems Paris Saint-Germain may have incredibly come back into the frame if rumours are to be believed as they are willing to stump-up the €75m + Raiola's huge fee for talking to the club about his client.

This is turning juicy... The last thing heard is Juve are talking to various sponsors about financing part of the deal so as to execute it quickly before it gets even crazier.

[SirBalon]

Further update this morning on the Matthijs de Ligt transfer saga which gets more and more entangled in all sorts.

It seems that AFC Ajax have completely broken all negotiations with Juventus where the transfer of Matthijs de Ligt to the Turin based club is concerned. Juventus continue to try and find other methods of payment and won't budge on the amount by only adding bonuses to raise the price. Late last night Ajax had had enough and told Juve that either they stump up the amount that Barcelona had offered and had been accepted or there won't be anymore negotiations. Ajax are also upset that Juve openly negotiated with de Ligt without ever having contacted Ajax on any interest first.

So the shocking part was that Ajax apparently contacted FC Barcelona this morning that de Ligt was still open for transfer and that they are free to talk to the player of they so wish. Barça have informed that the agreement between both clubs in March still stands on the transfer fee amount but that they don't have any plans at all on re-negotiating with Matthijs de Ligt and especially his agent Mino Raiola. Barcelona added that both sides of negotiation stand as was with what was offered to Ajax and the player back in March.

As I mentioned last night, PSG have now entered the frame as they are willing to offer both what Ajax want and also meet the player and agent's demands. A source from within Ajax are saying that they are trying hard for the PSG option to be the last available one as they do care about the player's future both at club level and more importantly at national level for the Netherlands. They don't see the PSG option as productive at his young age.

Matthijs de Ligt was issued an order this morning to return to training as an AFC Ajax player next week until things change.

[Dave]

Amazing that people are willing to pay so much money for Harry Maguire when this guys knocking around at a much more reasonable fee.

[Mel81x+]

If you're Man City you ditch Maguire like a hot-potato and cough up 80 million for this kid and bring him on. Juventus will be left with their dick in their hands, Barcelona will be out of it as well and the player and his agent get what they want. In the end he'll grow with a fast attack team and it will benefit him in the longer run. He can then think about ditching Raiola as his agent so his next move is smoother. Man City also get a good replacement, long-term, for Vinny Kompany.

If you're PSG you dump the Coutinho swap and take the money from the Neymar deal and offer this kid 100million and call it a good day at the bank and clean the shackles you're going to put at his feet. 

If you're any other club you want to stay far away from this mess unless you have more than what anyone is offering then its a good deal as you really dont care if Raiola pockets whatever he does anyways as you're getting a good prospect for the future. 

[Rick]

I'm actually shocked. Even if you pay 85m for him with that fat cunts fee, it's still about the same as what Maguire will cost you and he's not even in the same universe as this lad in terms of quality and potential. 

If Utd & City were smart, they'd be hijacking this deal.

[SirBalon]

1 hour ago, Rick said:

I'm actually shocked. Even if you pay 85m for him with that fat cunts fee, it's still about the same as what Maguire will cost you and he's not even in the same universe as this lad in terms of quality and potential. 

If Utd & City were smart, they'd be hijacking this deal.

Man Utd were already in for him and he said he didn’t want to go mate. It’s not an option.

[Rick]

16 minutes ago, SirBalon said:

Man Utd were already in for him and he said he didn’t want to go mate. It’s not an option.

It is for City though.

[Mel81x+]

Lets all take a step back and be honest here. Its not really about where De Ligt wants to go anymore its where Raiola wants to send him now.

[RandoEFC+]

City should definitely be all over it. Laporte is good but Stones and Otamendi (and Maguire) aren't in the same league as De Ligt and he could be their first choice centre back for a decade or more.

[Batard]

I wonder whether something beyond fiscal means is taking the heat out of the transfer rush for the lad. There's no doubt he is quality as offensive defender, but I noticed for both Ajax and Holland he occasionally 'switches off' and very much has to use his pace to bail himself out. Which doesn't always work out as he can be quite rash with his decision making. There is no doubt playing at a higher level will help, but it will also expose this to a higher degree and you're banking on him being as good if not better than van Dijk for the fee involved. And as far as I'm concerned, he's not a better defender than van Dijk.