Tottenham Hotspur have been strongly linked with Ajax’s Matthijs de Ligt.
Former Tottenham Hotspur winger Steven Pienaar has told Ajax Showtime that he thinks Ajax defender Matthijs de Ligt should stay put for a little while yet.
De Ligt, 18, has come up through the ranks of Ajax’s famed youth academy, and has become a first-team star with the Amsterdam giants in the last 18 months.
The centre back not only already has 50 first-team appearances for Ajax to his name, but has also earned five caps for the Netherlands in a superb start to his career.
Unsurprisingly, De Ligt is starting to attract admiring glances from around Europe, with a host of clubs now being linked with big moves for him – including Tottenham Hotspur.
Football.London report that Spurs are weighing up a summer bid for De Ligt, suggesting that Mauricio Pochettino could look to break the club’s transfer record with a £50million swoop for the Dutchman.
That would see De Ligt reunite with his former Ajax centre back partner Davinson Sanchez, who joined Spurs last summer, and potentially replace an ex-Ajax defender in Toby Alderweireld.
Spurs fans should be excited about a possible move for De Ligt, but one former Spurs player has urged the teenager to stay put and keep learning with the Eredivisie giants.
Ex-Tottenham Hotspur winger Steven Pienaar has told Ajax Showtime that he thinks De Ligt is too young to make a big summer move, and should keep playing regular first-team football in major European competitions with Ajax before making a switch.
“De Ligt is still too young for that step,” said Pienaar. “He has to be patient and keep playing at Ajax for a while longer. At Ajax you play European football every year and when you play at European level, you develop the fastest,” he added.
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