Man Utd plan €50m move for new Van Dijk

Robin Bairner

• 14 Feb 2025 00:40 CST
• 7 min read

Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim wants to strengthen his defence during the summer transfer window and could pick up a bargain by snapping up a player similar to Virgil van Dijk for €50 million.

Van Dijk has been the Premier League’s outstanding defender over the course of his nine-year stay in the division with Southampton and now Liverpool and is a model for any modern centre-back to build their game around.

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Current ETV

Virgil van Dijk

D (C)

Liverpool

Virgil van Dijk

D (C)

Liverpool

€21.3M

ETV Range

€19.2M - €23.4M

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While doubts rage over the Netherlands star’s future at Anfield due to a contract that expires at the end of June, there is no prospect of him trading the Reds for a move to Man Utd.

Instead, the Red Devils are hunting the next up-and-coming central defender and have turned their attention to RB Leipzig star Castello Lukeba, according to Fichajes.

Man Utd are planning to make a €50m bid for the Frenchman, who has become a key part of the Leipzig rearguard. It is thought he is a player who could help iron out the inconsistencies in the defence at Old Trafford, which have been painfully apparent all season.

The 22-year-old, however, is also wanted by Real Madrid and this, in combination with Leipzig being reticent to sell one of their stars, could drive his price higher. Lukeba’s Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) stands at €60.7m, suggesting that United are planning on lowballing the Germans with their first bid.

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.

Theoretically, then, Lukeba could become the best centre-back in world football and buying him for €50m would be a steal.