Manchester United reportedly enquired over the availability of Bayern Munich defender Matthijs De Ligt on loan, according to reports.
A new centre-back is set to be a priority for the summer due to the questions that remain over the majority of the current options at Erik ten Hag’s disposal at Manchester United.
Injury problems have been the Achilles heel of the Red Devils as they have struggled to build a consistent base for the team to improve upon and this is partly due to the lack of availability of their key men.
As a result, a new defender will surely be targeted and one of the names that has, perhaps unsurprisingly, been linked with a move to Old Trafford is Bayern Munich defender Matthijs De Ligt.
De Ligt loan
According to a report from Laurie Whitwell in The Athletic, United made a loan enquiry not just for Eric-Maxim Choupo Moting but also for Dutchman De Ligt.
If they thought signing De Ligt permanently in January was too far-fetched, attempting to sign the former Ajax defender on loan is almost bordering on ridiculous.
De Ligt has been linked away from the club this summer with the Dutchman unhappy at the game time he has received under Thomas Tuchel according to BILD and it isn’t inconceivable to imagine the Red Devils at the front of the queue for his signature, especially if Ten Hag remains in charge.
When Ineos get their hands on their ideal candidates for the sporting and technical director role of the club, they will have to come into United with their own list of targets and not allow the Dutchman to dictate which direction the Red Devils go.
De Ligt would be a good signing
Despite the connotations of another former Ajax player signing for United, De Ligt at Old Trafford would be a superb signing and there were tentative rumours back in 2019 that they could move for the defender.
That wasn’t to be, however, and De Ligt moved to Juventus before moving to Bayern in 2022 for £68 million, according to Sky Sports. Despite De Ligt being on the scene for a while now, he remains just 24 years of age and he could be the club’s defensive lynchpin for the next decade.
His pass completion rate of 91 per cent, as well as his 5.56 progressive passes per 90, makes him an option certainly worth considering. De Ligt has missed two months of this season due to injury and that may well be the only red flag in this deal.
He’s played just 459 Bundesliga minutes this season, so a deal could well happen. Any talk of a loan move, however, is surely far-fetched.
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