Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag is ‘very interested’ in signing Bayern Munich centre-back Matthijs de Ligt this summer, according to Sky Sport Germany.
The Netherlands star joined the Bundesliga champions from Juventus last season, but he is said to be assessing his options beyond the current campaign.
De Ligt has played second fiddle to Kim Min-jae and Dayot Upamecano in central defence this term. He is currently assured to start with Min-jae away on Asian Cup duty.
However, a summer move is not out of question. With Thomas Tuchel’s interest in signing Ronald Araujo, De Ligt fears he could become the fourth-choice centre-back.
Ten Hag is ‘very interested’ in a reunion with De Ligt after working together at Ajax between 2017 and 2019. He could be a top transfer target if he remains United’s manager this summer.
Man Utd could find it hard to convince De Ligt
The centre-back has not expressed any frustration at Bayern and remains fully committed at the club.
His agent could be working behind the scenes for a transfer, but that would highly depend on Bayern purchasing a marquee centre-back. Araujo is the top target for Tuchel.
The Uruguayan is currently an undisputed starter for Barcelona. The Catalan giants may have financial troubles, but he is probably the last player they would consider selling.
Taking this into mind, we believe De Ligt will continue with Bayern next term. If the club are ready to sell, Ten Hag’s presence alone may not persuade the player to move to Old Trafford.
The €65 million-rated star may want Champions League football at his next club and that is far from guaranteed with United eight points adrift of the top four, as things stand.
If the club were to finish seventh or eighth in the table, Ten Hag may not be at the helm beyond May. Hence, there is a lot to consider. De Ligt to United seems pure speculation.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com
