Man United icon Paul Scholes is wrong about Matthijs de Ligt - Erik ten Hag has signed a winner

Manchester United legend Paul Scholes has given a damning verdict on Manchester United centre-back Matthijs de Ligt.

The former midfield maestro was joined by former foe turned punditry friend Jamie Carragher, when he gave his take on De Ligt, when speaking on The Overlap: "Erik ten Hag couldn’t wait to get Matthijs de Ligt instead of Harry Maguire, he was just waiting for the opportunity.

"I’m not sure it’s that much of an upgrade – De Ligt played against Southampton, Maguire would have been fine against Southampton.

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"He might be slightly better, but it’s not a massive improvement where you think, ‘Wow’. It’s like that with all the signings."

Scholes is a legend at United and quite rightly so given the incredible ability he showed during his playing career. But on this occasion, he's got it wrong.

De Ligt is just five Premier League matches into his United career - one of which was arguably a Man of the Match performance. It is too early to cast a verdict on the signing but even if it wasn't it's hard to argue that De Ligt has been below-par.

The pedigree of De Ligt is there for all to see; Ajax’s second youngest-ever goal scorer, the youngest appearance maker in a European final, Golden Boy winner 2021, Netherlands debut at 17 - I could go on. It is easy to forget, given his frame and stature, that we are talking about a player who has just turned 25.

Most centre-backs reach their peak between 29-32 as their reading of the game improves. Once settled in England, De Ligt will undoubtedly improve - and will continue to do so until he hits that peak.

He also boasts league titles