Juventus and Netherlands defender Matthijs de Ligt believes that his club rival and international teammate Stefan de Vrij is a top defender.
Speaking to Dutch broadcaster NOS after the Netherlands’ 4-0 World Cup qualifying win over Montenegro, as reported by FCInterNews, the 22-year-old gave his thoughts on Inter defender de Ligt.
De Ligt arrived in Serie A in the summer of 2019, joining the Bianconeri from Dutch champions Ajax, and he joined de Ligt who had been in Italy since the summer of 2014 with Lazio and then with Inter since his move in the summer of 2018.
Both Dutch centre-backs are now Scudetto-winners, with de Ligt having won the league with Juventus in his first two seasons in Serie A and de Vrij having won last season with the Nerazzurri.
The pair are potentially in competition for a starting spot with the Dutch national team as well as for club honours in Italy, but de Ligt can only praise his teammate and underlines that they share a common goal on the international stage.
“Competition is a positive thing,” he said, “it’s up to [Netherlands coach Louis] Van Gaal to decide who plays. Stefan is in good shape, he is doing well at Inter too.”
“Those who start on the bench must support the team, I will always do s0 and I think he will too. We have a common goal, which is the World Cup – personal rivalries do not help,” he explained.
