Juventus defender Matthijs de Ligt said ‘winning is the only thing that matters’ for Max Allegri, highlighted the importance of Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini, before revealing which striker he wants to challenge.
The Dutchman spoke to DAZN ahead of the Derby della Mole this weekend and revealed he’s ‘happy’ with Max Allegri’s return to the Allianz Stadium this summer.
“In my opinion he is a coach with great experience,” De Ligt said. “He plays football, he has won a lot at Juve and Milan.
“I’m happy that he’s my coach, for me it’s important to improve. Tactically, he helps me a lot. He has this idea of playing for 90 minutes, with the right mentality. Winning is not important, it’s the only thing that matters. That’s the mentality he has.”
De Ligt has Italy veterans Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini as his role models at Continassa and he spoke about their relationship.
“I speak a lot with them, they are a great reference,” he said. “They have won a lot, with Juventus and with Italy.
“They told me that it’s important to have physical strength, that I’m good on the ball but I have to stay focused, be calm. Because the team feels it too and then we play better.”
After a difficult start to the season, De Ligt said the players at the Bianconeri ‘prefer compliments’ but stressed the criticism is ‘useful’ to improve.
“We prefer to get compliments,” he added. “But criticism is normal and useful. I’m the most critical of myself, and I always ask myself what I can improve.”
De Ligt joked about his many handballs during his first season at the Bianconeri and revealed he practiced tennis when he was younger.
“If I wasn’t a footballer? They say in the first year I had many handballs, maybe I would have been a volleyball player,” he joked.
“But I always wanted to become a footballer, I did everything to get here. Tennis player? I practiced for six or seven years, but I liked team sport better.”
Former right-back Keje Molenaar is De Ligt’s father-in-law, and the Juventus defender revealed the two former Ajax players talk a lot of football together.
“Me and my father-in-law talk a lot about football,” he said. “He played too and he knows how this world is.
“Sometimes it’s good to talk to him, he has a lot of experience in life and football. Sometimes I’m calmer after a chat with him.”
When asked which striker he wants to play against, De Ligt immediately pointed at Bayern Munich star Robert Lewandowski.
“Lewandowski,” he said. “He doesn’t always play well, but he has a great sense of goal.”
The 22-year-old has opened his account too this season, scoring the winner in a 3-2 win over Spezia.
De Ligt has played five times in Serie A and twice in the Champions League this term and was important in the 1-0 win over Chelsea on Wednesday.