# De Ligt’s World Cup Dreams Crushed – Devastating Blow for Netherlands

Heartbreaking news for our Dutch centre-back, Reds. Matthijs de Ligt won’t be lacing up his boots at the 2026 World Cup after finally going under the knife for that nagging back injury that’s been plaguing him.

This is absolutely gutting – not just for the lad himself, but for Netherlands and for us as well. De Ligt has been absolutely immense at the back this season, and you have to feel for him. He’s clearly been battling through the pain, trying everything possible to avoid surgery, but sometimes your body just says enough is enough.

The timing couldn’t be worse, could it? Missing a home World Cup – with matches being played across North America – must be absolutely devastating for any player, let alone someone of De Ligt’s caliber and ambition. These tournaments don’t come around often, and at his age, he’ll be wondering when the next opportunity might arise.

From a United perspective, though, we need to look at the bigger picture here. Yes, it’s a blow losing him during the summer when we’d hoped he’d get some rest, but if this surgery sorts out the problem once and for all, we’ll have a fully fit, pain-free De Ligt ready to marshal our defence for years to come.

Michael Carrick worked absolute wonders getting us into third place and back into the Champions League this past season. Now imagine what our Head Coach can achieve with a completely healthy squad next campaign? De Ligt returning at full fitness, no more managing his minutes or playing through discomfort – that’s a massive boost for our 2026-27 title challenge.

Get well soon, Matthijs. Miss the World Cup, but come back stronger and help us bring silverware back to Old Trafford where it belongs!

**#MUFC #GGMU**

✍️ This summary was written by the MUFC Fanatics SA team based on reporting from BBC Sport.

Source: BBC Sport — Read original article