Man Utd Tipped to Renew Interest in Juventus Defender Matthijs de Ligt
By Ben Carter
Manchester United are apparently ready to renew their interest in Juventus centre back Matthijs de Ligt ahead of the 2020/21 season.
The Netherlands international has spent the last nine months in Turin following a £77m move from Ajax, where de Ligt - together with Barcelona's Frenkie de Jong - was the star of Erik ten Hag's side that reached the Champions League semi-finals.
De Ligt has largely struggled somewhat making the move to Juventus, prompting ESPN to regurgitate news about Manchester United's interest in the 20-year-old defender.
ESPN's report says United are prepared to renew their interest in de Ligt once the transfer window opens, stating the centre back is still viewed as an ideal addition to their project under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Eventually, ESPN do point out that it's not in any way likely Juventus will cash in on their new defender just one year into de Ligt's career at the club.
And while Manchester United might be prepared to act if Juventus decide to cut their losses, the Bianconeri don't have enough back-up to warrant selling the club's third most expensive signing of all time.
On top of the ageing Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini, Daniele Rugani hasn't convinced anyone over his long-term future since joining from Empoli, while Merih Demiral (while highly rated) struggled to break into Maurizio Sarri's first team before picking up a cruciate ligament injury.
ESPN don't suggest how much any deal between de Ligt and Manchester United could cost, although they do point out how long-term target Kalidou Koulibaly is still on their radar ahead of the new season.
If Manchester United's decision-makers do give the green light to signing a new defender, Solskjaer will likely be forced to offload one of his current options once the transfer window reopens.
Harry Maguire will be going nowhere and Victor Lindelöf's future should also be secure, but Eric Bailly (contracted until 2022), Axel Tuanzebe (2022) or Phil Jones (2023) might have to be moved on to make room for any new signings.
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