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Liverpool have reportedly entered talks with Bayern Munich defender Matthijs De Ligt, who has also been linked with a move to Manchester United. As reported by The Boot Room, the Reds have initiated talks with the Dutchman but could face strong competition for his signature.
The aforementioned report claims Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, and Newcastle United are all admirers of the former Ajax defender. It has also been claimed that the Netherlands international fancies the idea of moving to the Premier League.
De Ligt made waves as a teenager at his boyhood club Ajax before securing a mega-money move to Juventus in 2019. However, he could not live up to his massive €75 million price tag at the Turin-based club.
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The Dutchman moved to Bayern Minich in 2022 in a deal worth a reported €77 million but failed to establish himself as a regular first-choice. The 24-year-old struggled for playing time under Thomas Tuchel last season and played just 1924 minutes of football across 30 games in all competitions.
Even though the Bavarian giants have parted ways with Thomas Tuchel, they are said to be keen on offloading De Ligt this summer. And there is no shortage of interest in the Dutchman despite his underwhelming spells at Juventus and Bayern.
As per the Boot Room, Liverpool captain and defender Virgil van Dijk urged the club to sign De Ligt in 2018. Should he move to Anfield, De Ligt would pair up with his compatriot and national team captain Van Dijk.
Liverpool could be where De Ligt finally lives up to his immense potential thanks to the presence of Van Dijk. He also has what it takes to take over from the latter as the defensive leader of the Reds in the years to come.
Manchester United legend names two players who could replace Mohamed Salah at Liverpool
Television pundit Paul Ince has named West Ham United's Mohamed Kudus and Wolverhampton Wanderers' Pedro Neto as ideal replacements for Mohamed Salah at Liverpool. He also named Michael Olise as a possible option but insisted that the Frenchman needs to stay at Crystal Palace for another season.
The former Liverpool and Manchester United winger said, as quoted by Bet 365:
"I think two players could replace Mohamed Salah at Liverpool. With Michael Olise, he's a very good kid, he could turn out to be a world-class player but I think he needs another year at (Crystal) Palace to play regular football week in and week out."
The former England international added:
"The two players I would pick when they are on their game are Mohammed Kudus at West Ham, I think he's very, very good, and my favourite is Pedro Neto at Wolves. If he can just stay away from injuries, I think this player is going to be world class. I really, really do. So I hope he gets a lot of time in Portugal in the Euros because he is unbelievable. If Salah does go, I'll be going for Neto. I know the Wolves won't like me to hear me say that being an ex-Wolves player, but those are the two that I'd be looking at."
While Salah has been linked with a move to the Saudi Pro League, Olise is one of the most coveted players on the planet right now and has been in talks with Chelsea and Manchester United.
Meanwhile, Neto and Kudus are also highly regarded and have been subject to transfer speculation.
