De Ligt savours scoring ‘special’ Juventus winner as he settles into Serie A

The Dutch defender proved decisive for his new side having struggled to adapt to life in Turin since his move from Ajax

Matthijs de Ligt said it was special to open his Juventus account with a Derby della Mole winner against Torino that sent the champions back to the top of the Serie A table.

De Ligt has been criticised for some erratic displays since joining from Ajax but the Netherlands centre-back came up with a crucial second-half goal in a 1-0 victory in Saturday’s clash.

He turned home from close range after substitute Gonzalo Higuain knocked a corner into his path to help Juve reclaim top spot from Inter, who won 2-1 at Bologna earlier in the day.

“I am really happy, of course,” De Ligt said to DAZN.

“It was a really important game, as Inter won also. We won 1-0 and it was my goal, so [it was] really special.”

De Ligt was arguably fortunate not to concede a penalty for handball in the first half, but the defender feels referee Daniele Doveri made the right decision not to point to the spot.

“I am just standing like this and the ball hit me,” he said. 

“I knew immediately it was not a penalty, because the rules are if my arms are down here, it’s not a penalty.”

De Ligt is confident he is starting to grow into his surroundings after finding the transition a little challenging following his move from Ajax. 

“Obviously, when you come to a new club, it’s always going to be hard,” the 20-year-old added.

“It’s going well, the guys made me feel welcome and I think I’m improving every game. I hope that I showed tonight what I can bring to the team.

“My team-mates are really nice, Higuain gave me an amazing assist and I’m really happy.”

Juventus coach Maurizio Sarri always knew de Ligt would take time to settle in Italy and believes he even struggled early on against Turin. 

“De Ligt struggled in the first 20 minutes, but then got into the game and had a very good second half,” Sarri said. 

“He is 19 years old, comes from a much more open and less tactical league than ours, the kind where errors happen and nobody notices.

“It’s only natural he’ll need a period of apprenticeship and he is improving.”

source: Goal