Man Utd open talks for ‘new Virgil van Dijk’

Carlo Garganese

• 26 Feb 2025 09:15 GMT
• 7 min read

Manchester United have opened talks to sign RB Leipzig defensive star Castello Lukeba.

That is according to Sacha Tovalieri, who reports that United have opened negotiations with the entourage of Lukeba ahead of the summer transfer market.

United are in the market for at least one centre back this season as they will release both Victor Lindelof and Jonny Evans on free transfers, while Lisandro Martinez will miss most of this year after tearing his ACL. There are also questions over the future of Harry Maguire.

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Tovalieri reports that United have been scouting the 22-year-old over the past few months and are sold on the player who has been tagged by some as the ‘new Virgil van Dijk’.

But it is understood that Leipzig will only agree to sell Lukeba if his release clause of €90 million is met, which would make him the most expensive defender in history.

Real Madrid are also reported to be interested in signing Lukeba.

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Lukeba signed for Leipzig in the summer of 2023 from Lyon for €34m and has proven to be a massive hit in the Bundesliga.

He has made 60 appearances for the East German side, scoring one goal. He won the DFL-Supercup in his first season at the club.

Lukeba made his senior France debut in 2023, while he was capped 20 times by the France Under-21 side. He also played at the Summer Olympics for France in 2024, winning the Silver medal.

Castello Lukeba: The world’s best centre-back in waiting?

In terms of Lukeba’s style, he strongly resembles Van Dijk, according to data analytics experts SciSport. Both are classed as ball-playing defenders.

The good news for Man Utd is that the heights that former Lyon centre-back Lukeba could hit are extraordinarily high.

Lukeba v Van Dijk: Playing style

SciSports give him a potential rating of 131.4. To put this into perspective, William Saliba of Arsenal is currently their highest-rated centre-back but only has a current SciSkill rating of 127.0.