Change to Barcelona? De Ligt keeps the future open

Central defender Matthijs de Ligt of Ajax Amsterdam left his future open again in the Eredivisie after a 4-1 defeat of FC Utrecht on Sunday, but at the same time confirmed talks.

“I don’t know if this was my last home game for Ajax or not,” said the 18-year-old at Fox Sports after the match. “As of now, it’s not. There’s no choice with any club.”

De Ligt, who is associated with a change to FC Barcelona, wanted to look very closely into the cards, but not: “I could say that I’m staying or going, but that’s not the issue at the moment,” he explained.

Ajax are on the brink of winning the Dutch championship and are three points ahead of PSV Eindhoven before the final matchday – who also have a 14-goal deficit.

“I think the title is fixed,” says de Ligt. “If we do our thing, we can’t miss it anymore. We can look back on a good season.”

De Ligt is “still here with Ajax. In that sense, it wasn’t my last home game either. There are conversations, but nothing concrete. You never know.”

The reason for his reluctance could also be a judgement by FIFA, which has blocked de Ligt’s advisor Mino Raiola worldwide for three months. The Italian is not allowed to make any transfers during this period.