Ajax had a fantastic 2018-19 season, during which they won the Eredivisie title and reached the semifinals of the Champions League against all odds, eliminating the likes of Real Madrid and Juventus in the process. A number of their young players were determined to take the next step in their careers the following summer, and two of these, defender Matthijs de Ligt and midfielder Frenkie de Jong, were said to be close to joining Barcelona.
De Jong eventually did move to Camp Nou, but De Ligt went to Juventus instead, and according to Sport, the reason for this change of plan was a casual chance meeting of De Ligt with Gerard Pique, while both players were on vacation.
Apparently, Pique advised De Ligt against the move, expressing his opinion that the young Dutchman wouldn’t play much at Barcelona.
It should be pointed out, however, that the Catalan outlet frequently puts out stories like this to try and explain why a player chose not to join Barcelona. It could well be that De Ligt simply thought the project at Juventus more appealing at the time.
