Man Utd make breakthrough in the pursuit of Matthijs De Ligt

Manchester United have made a breakthrough in their bid to sign Bayern Munich centre-back target Matthijs de Ligt while the agent of a Serie A forward has confirmed interest from the Red Devils in his client.

United are in the transfer window for a centre-back following the departure of Raphael Varane.

New sporting director Dan Ashworth who is tasked with rebuilding the United squad having been brought in by Sir Jim Ratcliffe to oversee recruitment at the club will now aim to lure Matthijs de Ligt to the Premier League.

Latest report from Bild now claim Man United are close to reaching an agreement for De Ligt.

The report claims United want to complete a deal for the 24-year-old as quickly as possible after Euro 2024 having told Bayern they are willing to meet their £42m asking price.

De Ligt is part of the Netherlands squad but is yet to make an appearance at the tournament having started just 16 games for Bayern last term.

Asked about his future at Bayern last month, De Ligt said: “I’ve already said this is not the time for me to think about it.

“We’re playing at the Euros now and that’s very important for me and the national team. That’s why I can’t say now what I think about this situation.

“But what I can say is that I’ve now played my second season at Bayern – I’m very happy. For now I’m focused on the Euros and then we’ll see what happens.”