£37m Man Utd star shockingly ‘left out’ of the squad for the first time since int’l debut – report | OneFootball

Manchester United duo Matthijs de Ligt and Joshua Zirkzee have suffered a major blow on Friday.

The United pair have been “left out” of the Dutch squad for next month’s Nations League quarter-finals.

The Athletic report that this is “the first occasion that De Ligt has not been picked in a squad, apart from when he has been injured, since making his international debut in 2017.”

The duo joined the Red Devils last summer but have faced a challenging first season at Old Trafford.

Zirkzee has struggled to make an impact, managing just five goals in 39 appearances across all competitions.

His last Premier League goal came way back on December 1 2024, in a dominant 4-0 win over Everton.

Manager Ruben Amorim believes Zirkzee is not a striker but someone who can operate behind a traditional number nine.

Despite his struggles in front of goal, the Dutch forward excels at link-up play.

His omission is understandable due to his lack of goals but De Ligt’s exclusion is a real shock.

The £37 million-rated ace is a former captain of the Netherlands but a string of errors over the past year has seemingly convinced Ronald Koeman to leave him out.

Inter Milan’s Stefan de Vrij is expected to partner Virgil van Dijk at the heart of the backline.

Jan Paul van Hecke and Nathan Ake are other alternatives.

De Ligt has put in a few decent performances for United.

He offers solidity when playing as a central centre-back but lacks the progressive passing ability of Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martinez.

He is a lethal threat in both boxes but Amorim needs his centre-backs to be technically sound with the ball at their feet.

The Netherlands are set to face Spain, hosting the first leg in Rotterdam on March 20 before heading to Valencia for the return fixture.

Stats from Transfermarkt.com

Article written by Sanidhya Bhardwaj .