Bayern Munich defender aims subtle dig at Matthijs de Ligt after Man Utd transfer

Matthijs de Ligt appears to be the subject of a subtle dig after moving to Manchester United in the summer.

De Ligt signed for United in a £43 million switch, reuniting with Erik ten Hag after their spell together at Ajax.

The decision to allow the Netherlands international to leave came as a surprise to many, with 70,000 Bayern fans signing a petition attempting to block the transfer.

The petition's description called De Ligt a "world-class defender" and said he was their best player in the 2022/23 season.

It didn't have any impact, however and De Ligt penned a five-year deal, with teammate Noussair Mazraoui also joining him.

But it doesn't seem as though his Bayern teammates are missing him too much, with Dayot Upamecano talking up his partnership with Kim Min-jae at the heart of the backline.

Image: Getty

As per journalist Kilian Kreit, the France international said: "It's a great fit with him. He also has more self-confidence [now]. Like myself, he's received a lot of criticism. But that's football. We have to keep our heads up and always give it our all."

De Ligt has made 10 appearances in all competitions so far but has experienced some struggles in adapting.

On Saturday he did help United get back to winning ways against Brentford, even after leaving the pitch on two occasions following a serious head injury which left him with blood gushing.

Last month, Bayern’s sporting director, Max Eberl, explained the two reasons why De Ligt was offloaded - stating that the current centre-back pairing are better suited to Vincent Kompany's way of playing.

Image: Getty

“Nevertheless, I had to make this decision because we also had to sell players," he said in a press conference.

“We felt more comfortable with [Dayot] Upamecano and Kim [Min-jae] because they can defend higher up the pitch.

“And then an offer came in for De Ligt.”