Koeman: ‘I Subbed De Ligt to Protect Him’.

Posted 2 months ago

Netherlands coach Ronald Koeman explained that he took off Manchester United's Matthijs de Ligt during their 2-2 draw with Germany on Tuesday to "protect" him.

Matthijs de Ligt, 25, was substituted at halftime during the UEFA Nations League match in Amsterdam after contributing to both of Germany's first-half goals. He was replaced by Brighton's Jan Paul van Hecke.

De Ligt’s misplaced pass allowed Deniz Undav to score, and his failed clearance led to Joshua Kimmich's goal. This came shortly after De Ligt made mistakes in the Dutch team's 5-2 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“Of course, I would have preferred to keep Matthijs on the pitch,” Koeman told Dutch broadcaster NOS. “It seems like he’s in a phase where every mistake is punished. I gave him another chance today but ultimately decided to protect him by taking him off.”

Koeman had previously addressed De Ligt's performance in their win against Bosnia, where he struggled to defend against 38-year-old striker Edin Dzeko, who scored Bosnia's second goal.