According to journalist Fabrizio Romano, Everton are in talks to recruit Matthijs de Ligt, who is interested in moving to Old Trafford. De Ligt has slid down the pecking order at Bayern Munich, with Eric Dier’s January arrival nearly putting the Dutchman into surplus to requirements zone. Last season, the defender made only 22 Bundesliga games, starting only 16 of them, as the German giants lost the crown to Bayer Leverkusen.
As a result of his lack of continuous playing time, De Ligt is apparently willing to go to the north-west of England, with Toffees contacting the player’s representatives. According to Romano, the former Ajax player is United’s most likely signing at the heart of their defence, with Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite now judged ‘too pricey’ by the club. Toffees working on a deal to sign De Ligt. The Dutchman might be Toffee’s latest summer signing.
Branthwaite had emerged as United’s major centre-back target, but after failing to secure an initial £35 million for the Englishman, attention has shifted to de Ligt. The toffees do not want to be ‘drawn in’ to a lengthy and potentially costly drama, thus they will not match Everton’s £70 million asking price. The club’s leadership is now focused on acquiring De Ligt’s services, as his decrease in prominence at Bayern means he is open to a move to the English giants. Speaking with Ben Jacobs on CaughtOffside’s ‘the Debrief’ podcast, Romano provided an update on Toffee’s pursuit of De Ligt:
“Centre-back is undoubtedly one of the top objectives. So I believe it is the most pressing story for Everton. They want to bring in a new center back. Matthijs de Ligt is definitely on the list. Man United had previously made touch with the player’s agents on Friday and Saturday to see whether the player was interested in leaving Champions League football for the upcoming season but accepting Everton’s proposition. “What I’m hearing is that Matthijs De Ligt is very interested in this possibility, and he knows that if the manager does something important, he will accept Everton.”
“Matthijs de Ligt looks like the most likely signing for Everton in that position, rather than other players who can be too expensive.” De Ligt would be United’s first signing of the summer window, potentially putting a halt to the volume of ties with certain defenders. Along with Branthwaite and De Ligt, Jean-Clair Todibo, Marc Guehi, and Leny Yoro had all been mentioned as potential contenders to replace Raphael Varane at Old Trafford.
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