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Manchester United have agreed a deal to sign Matthijs de Ligt from Bayern Munich.
The move will be worth €50m (£42.9m), with an initial €45m (£38.6m) plus €5m (£4.3m) in add-ons.
The transfer is subject to De Ligt passing a medical, with personal terms not expected to be a problem.
The defender would need to be registered by midday on Thursday to be available for Manchester United’s opening Premier League match against Fulham on Friday.
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The 24-year-old has spent two seasons at Bayern Munich since signing from Juventus, playing 73 times and scoring five goals.
De Ligt also played under Man Utd boss Erik ten Hag at Ajax, where they won the Eredivisie in 2019.
In a separate deal, United have agreed many of the details of a deal for Bayern Munich’s right-back Noussair Mazraoui.
They are expected to proceed with that move once Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s transfer to West Ham has been completed.
The clubs are now close to an agreement on all aspects of a deal for the defender. Wan-Bissaka’s exit terms were still under discussion, but those are now not thought to be an issue.
There is an increased confidence from all parties deal will now go through.
Would De Ligt help ease Man Utd defensive injury crisis?
De Ligt would be United’s second centre-back signing of the summer after the £59m arrival of Leny Yoro.
The 18-year-old impressed in his pre-season debut against Rangers but faces a three-month stint on the sidelines after suffering a foot injury against Arsenal.
United’s defence was ravaged by injuries last season and that crisis has spilled into this campaign.
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Ahead of their clash with rivals Manchester City in the Community Shield, Ten Hag said there was a “question mark” over the fitness of Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Luke Shaw.
With Yoro and Tyrell Malacia already ruled out, the United manager may have to give substantial minutes to Lysander Martinez and Diogo Dalot who are yet to feature in pre-season.
De Ligt thrived under Ten Hag – Could he do so again at Man Utd?
Analysis from Sky Sports’ Adam Bate:
“I do not know if Matthijs de Ligt has shown 60 to 80 per cent of his potential,” Erik ten Hag said back in 2019. “But we are talking about one of the best defenders in Europe and I have no doubt that he will soon be number one in this position.”
De Ligt was 19 at the time and Ten Hag’s captain at Ajax on their run to the brink of the Champions League final. He had been 17 when becoming the youngest player to feature in a Europa League final and departed, still a teenager, having made 100 senior appearances.
There was little doubt that he was bound for more glory at Juventus and beyond. Ten Hag, speaking more broadly about young Ajax players, name-checked De Ligt as one of those who have “a certain invincible feeling” about them. He was a sure thing.
But the player now being pursued by Manchester United is at a slightly different stage of his career. His time in Turin was no more than a qualified success. At Bayern Munich, his form dipped, resulting in him losing his place in the side for both club and country.
And yet, there is optimism. At 24, there is still time for him to come again. De Ligt retains the fundamentals. There is a belief that if his old coach becomes his new one, the best years could yet be ahead of him. Ten Hag could help to rediscover his potential.
And that potential remains vast.
