Bayern legend rues club’s ‘pathetic’ decision to sell ‘stable leader’ to United, he was their ‘best’ defender

Bayern Munich legend Lothar Matthaus is in disbelief over the club’s decision to part ways with Matthijs de Ligt.

His fiery reaction comes after Bayern oversaw a cagey 90 minutes against Wolfsburg on Sunday, during which they conceded twice and were, therefore, at risk of dropping early points until Serge Gnabry’s late heroics sealed the victory.

Kim Min-jae, who was heavily linked with Manchester United last summer, was deployed from the offset alongside Dayot Upamecano at the Volkswagen Arena.

However, when the South Korean was caught in possession for Wolfsburg’s second goal, he proceeded to be replaced by Eric Dier, with outlet TZ claiming he’d been playing with a ‘slight thigh injury’.

Summer signing Hiroki Ito remains sidelined after he sustained a metatarsal fracture during pre-season, meaning Vincent Kompany is somewhat light on options in the centre of his defence. As such, the board are scouring the market for any potential acquisitions before the window slams shut this Friday.

Such backline woes have prompted concerns over whether De Ligt should have been sold in the first place. He had three years remaining on his contract in Munich, and it remains to be seen if they could find a player who boasts a similar level of top European experience – especially for his age of 25 – available this summer.

Therefore, you can understand why Matthaus has bemoaned his former club’s decision to sell the ex-Ajax captain.

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Matthaus rues ‘pathetic’ De Ligt sale

“The defence is and remains Bayern’s Achilles heel,” he began on Sky Sports Germany, translated by iMiaSanMia.

“Matthijs de Ligt was sold, even though he was the most stable defender over the past two years. He was the leader of the backline. Now Bayern are again looking for a successor to David Alaba. For me, it’s pathetic that this leader is missing. After all, we are talking about FC Bayern. All the centre-backs currently in the Bayern squad have to be clear with themselves first.

“If de Ligt had not been sold, I would not have worries at (about) FC Bayern now,” the World Cup winner continued. “But my opinion about him is probably different to the people in charge. It’s a decision that has to be accepted. But many – including within the team – are just shaking their heads. Because the players also know that their defence is shaky. And then the best defender for many is sold.”