Man Utd AGREED transfer for Matthijs de Ligt cast into DOUBT by Ornstein

Bence Bocsák
Bence Bocsák
  • 11 Jul 2024 13:30 BST
  • 2 min read
Matthijs de Ligt, Erik ten Hag, Manchester United
© IMAGO/FootballTransfers

There has been some suggestions that Manchester United are close to agreeing a deal for Matthijs de Ligt. However, The Athletic's David Ornstein has shut down those suggestions.

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It's no secret Erik ten Hag is desperate to bring in another centre-back to Old Trafford this summer.

The club's pursuits have seen Manchester United explore a number of different deals already on the market.

READ MORE: What Man Utd fans can expect from Joshua Zirkzee

Most notably, the club's efforts were thwarted when they tried to bring in Jean-Clair Todibo due to him playing for a club in Nice who are being owned by INEOS.

A move for fellow French centre-back Leny Yoro has also hit a stumbling block with the youngster believed to be favouring a move to Real Madrid.

Currently, the most likely centre-back recruit for Manchester United appears to be De Ligt who is open to a move and who Bayern Munich are willing to sell.

Current ETV
Player image Matthijs de Ligt
Matthijs de Ligt

D (C)

Bayern logo

Bayern

Matthijs de Ligt
Matthijs de Ligt

D (C)

Bayern

Bayern

€52.8M

ETV Range

€39.6M - €65.9M

He is also someone Ten Hag will know very well from his time working together at Ajax prior to moving to Old Trafford.

However, while there have been suggestions that Manchester United are close to agreeing a deal for De Ligt, The Athletic's David Ornstein has shut down those claims.

As things stand, Manchester United are working on this De Ligt deal. I think some of the reports [are] saying that a fee is close… my information is that’s not necessarily accurate." Ornstein said on The Athletic's podcast.

READ MORE: How Man Utd will line up with Joshua Zirkzee

“I don’t mean to sound any alarm, but as things stand, it is something Manchester United continue to work on. I don’t have any sense of it being imminent, about to be done and announced.

“Famous last words, this podcast comes out, and he’s holding up a United shirt. Well, he’s not because he’s at the Euros, so we’ll be okay on that front, but I think a bit of patience is required on this.”

United will be keen to avoid another move for a centre-back falling through. De Ligt seems like an ideal candidate and it would make sense to bring him to Old Trafford. But the longer the negotiations drag on, the more doubt there will be about a potential transfer.

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