De Ligt can sign for 'biggest club in the world' amid Man Utd & Arsenal links

Imre Himmelbauer

• Updated: 17 Feb 2024 16:08 GMT
• 4 min read

Real Madrid are in the market for Matthijs de Ligt, Spanish media report.

The defender is dissatisfied with his situation at Bayern Munich, where he is not an undisputed starter. Erik ten Hag's Manchester United, Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain are also said to be interested in the 24-year-old Dutchman.

PSG even came knocking last winter, but De Ligt rejected a move from Bayern at the time. In Germany, it was reported earlier this week that De Ligt was 'visibly frustrated' that he was snubbed for the top match against table-topping Bayer Leverkusen, which Bayern lost 3-0.

BILD wrote that the man himself said after the match that he was in great shape. This came in response to coach Thomas Tuchel saying he kept him aside because De Ligt was struggling with an injury.

Real Madrid alerted

The situation has not gone unnoticed in Madrid and the club management of Spain's current league leaders are reportedly doing everything they can to stay informed. Real Madrid hope to strike for the 43-cap Dutch international next summer.

De Ligt still has a contract until 2027 and boasts an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of €49.2 million. What is key for the Madrid chiefs is that both David Alaba and Éder Militão have torn their cruciate ligaments and are therefore out of action for a long time.

The latter will probably be available again in March, but it is not certain whether the 26-year-old Brazilian will immediately be back to his old level. Alaba, who also played for Bayern in the past, is likely to be out for the entire season.

Nevertheless, the arrival of De Ligt is seen as a difficult assignment. In addition to the long-term contract of the defender, Los Blancos are also working on the arrival of Alphonso Davies. It does not seem likely that Bayern would want to sell two of their defenders to a European competitor in one transfer window.

Wim Kieft impressed by Real Madrid

Someone who would probably be in favour of De Ligt's transfer to Real Madrid is former Dutch international Wim Kieft. The ex-Ajax striker called the Spanish giants the "biggest and best club in the world" in his column in De Telegraaf on Saturday.

"The glory period with Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Luka Modric, etc. is gradually coming to an end. The team has been refreshed with new young top talents such as Vinícius Júnior, Rodrygo, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Eduardo Camavinga and Kylian Mbappé will probably be added from the summer," said Kieft.

"In the meantime, the stadium has been modernised for a billion euros. That is a different story to the chaos at Barcelona, where they completely lost their way after the departures of Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets and all the other breakthrough youth players and made ridiculous purchases for ridiculous money."