Manchester United are reportedly in talks with another Bundesliga talent alongside their proposed move for Bayern Munich defender Matthijs de Ligt.
Man Utd negotiating De Ligt deal
The Red Devils and new co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe have been busy so far this summer, although the first signing of the INEOS era is yet to be announced. Following their FA Cup final triumph against Manchester City in May, United held a lengthy end-of-season review which was finalised last month. The club decided to keep Erik ten Hag in charge as manager, with attention now on possible incomings and outgoings at Old Trafford.
Some of the main targets on Ratcliffe’s radar appear to be a new centre-back and centre-forward after the departures of Raphael Varane and Anthony Martial. Bologna striker Joshua Zirkzee, currently at Euro 2024 with the Netherlands, appears to be the leading contender to come in and rival Rasmus Hojlund, with talks personally held between the player and Ten Hag. Meanwhile, at the back, fellow countryman De Ligt, also in Germany with the Netherlands, is a concrete target.
Fabrizio Romano revealed that De Ligt has only given the green light to Man Utd, who are currently in talks with Bayern Munich over a transfer.
The centre-back has worked with Ten Hag previously at Ajax, and when Ten Hag was appointed at Old Trafford in 2022, De Ligt said:
"He is someone who loves his job. Erik loves to work. He wants to do everything to make his team play better. He's someone who is really into the details. This makes him a really good trainer who improves players. He has a lot of qualities to succeed and we will have to see how he goes."
A reunion between the pair could be on the cards, but United may not stop there when it comes to signing players from the Bundesliga.
Man Utd make Winsley Boteli contact
According to reports from German outlet Bild, relayed by GFNG, Man Utd have joined the race to sign Borussia Monchengladbach talent Winsley Boteli by initiating talks.
It is stated that Mitchell van der Gaag, assistant to Ten Hag, has made contact with Boteli’s advisor Christopher Mandiangu over a transfer, with Italian giants Juventus also interested. Van der Gaag and Mandiangu reportedly know each other from their time at FC Eindhoven, so the Man Utd’s assistant’s ties to Boteli could prove helpful.
Boteli will turn 18 on Friday and is a centre-forward who joined Borussia Monchengladbach’s youth system back in 2022 from Swiss side Servette.
A Switzerland U18 international, Boteli has scored an impressive 39 goals in 58 games during his youth career, as well as providing 10 assists. He is yet to feature at senior level for Monchengladbach and is under contract for a further 12 months. By the looks of things, Man Utd could look to take advantage of his contract situation, with talks seemingly underway.