Rafael Van der Vaart has compared Ajax defender Perr Schuurs to Matthijs de Ligt after the reported Liverpool target impressed in last night’s Champions League clash at Anfield, speaking to Ziggo Sport, via Voetbal Primeur.
The 21-year-old centre-back might be older now than De Ligt was when he captained the Amsterdam giants to the semi-finals in 2019 but the comparisons between two blond-bombshell centre-halves is impossible to ignore.
Like the £67 million Juventus superstar, Schuurs is as useful with the ball as he is without it, renowned for a superb passing range honed at the home of total voetbal.
The Dutch international has been linked with Liverpool since the group-stage meeting between Ajax and the Premier League champions in Holland in October, and did his burgeoning reputation no harm at all last night either (Mirror).
Schuurs’ positional sense and searing pace caught the eye as Liverpool edged to a hard-fought 1-0 win thanks to an Andre Onana howler and a Curtis Jones tap-in.
“Schuurs was really good in the first half,” says former Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid playmaker Van der Vaart.
“There is more energy in him. He uses his body well. I really enjoy watching him. That boy played at Fortuna Sittard not so long ago.
“Matthijs de Ligt did that often in the Champions League (defending) one-v-one. I don’t see that many defenders doing that.”
Van der Vaart did admit Schuurs was fortunate to avoid a red card for a late lunge on the rampaging Sadio Mane but that was perhaps the only slip in an otherwise fine performance at the home of his potential future employers.
The £27 million-rated Dutchman won’t be returning to Anfield in January, however.
Schuurs has made it clear he plans to stay at Ajax and continue his development for the foreseeable future (VZ).
“Don’t you think he has made incredible steps?” asks former Ajax ace Kenneth Perez of a man who joined Ajax from Fortuna Sittard in 2018.
“Can you expect a player from Fortuna Sittard to make the step to world-class level within two years? What he did well this match was his speed in shielding Mane. With that speed, you can make a difference in Europe.”
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