Man Utd have agreed £42.9m Matthijs de Ligt transfer and £17.2m deal for Noussair Mazraoui; Bayern Munich players competed medicals on Monday, with Aaron Wan-Bissaka set to join West Ham
Tuesday 13 August 2024 20:25, UK
Manchester United are closing on a double deal with Bayern Munich after defenders Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui completed their medicals.
United have agreed a deal with Bayern worth €50m (£42.9m) for De Ligt, with an initial €45m (£38.6m) potentially supplemented by €5m (£4.3m) in add-ons.
Erik ten Hag's side have also settled on a £17.2m deal for Morocco international Mazraoui - a transfer fee of £12.9m plus performance-related add-ons worth £4.3m.
Both players arrived in Manchester on Monday for medicals and have now completed those procedures ahead of their expected moves to Old Trafford.
They would need to be registered by midday on Thursday to be available for Manchester United's opening Premier League match against Fulham on Friday, live on Sky Sports.
De Ligt has spent two seasons at Bayern Munich since signing from Juventus, playing 73 times and scoring five goals.
The 25-year-old played under Man Utd boss Erik ten Hag at Ajax, where they won the Eredivisie in 2019.
United's pursuit of Mazraoui has been dependent on Wan-Bissaka leaving for West Ham.
Wan-Bissaka completed his own medical on Monday, with United expected to receive a £15m fee from the Hammers for the former Crystal Palace right-back.
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.
There was some good news as Harry Maguire started against Manchester City in the Community Shield, but Victor Lindelof and Luke Shaw were not in the matchday squad. Lindelof has entered the final year of his contract.
Tyrell Malacia was also absent, but both Lisandro Martinez and Diogo Dalot played the entire game at Wembley as Man Utd lost on penalties.
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.
