Erik ten Hag has lifted the lid on Manchester United's transfer activity and speculation linking the club with Bayern Munich centre-back Matthijs de Ligt.
With summer transfer activity ramping up following the conclusion of Euro 2024 and Copa America, United have been making significant strides forward to strengthen their squad.
New part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has already made sweeping changes to his back-office setup, bringing in the likes of Dan Ashworth as the club's new sporting director and Omar Berrada as the new chief executive.
This month, the Red Devils have finalised transfers for striker Joshua Zirkzee from Bologna and highly-rated teenage defender Leny Yoro from Ligue 1 outfit Lille.
Additionally, United are rumoured to be interested in several more players, including Manuel Ugarte, Adrien Rabiot, Jarrad Branthwaite and De Ligt.
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Ten Hag explains De Ligt transfer situation
During the Euro 2024 tournament, widespread reports suggested that United had already agreed on personal terms with De Ligt, and in a recent interview, Ten Hag addressed the club's plans regarding the potential signing of the Bayern Munich star.
According to transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano, Ten Hag commented to Dutch outlet AD: "It remains to be seen whether Matthijs de Ligt will join us... I know him well. I wanted to sign him two years ago but at that time, he was already very far along to join Bayern."
He added: "Believe it or not, his name did not come from me in the process."
While many believed that it is Ten Hag who has been pushing for De Ligt's signing, the United manager insists that every new arrival is agreed upon within the new structure established by owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
"We still have to wait and see whether De Ligt will come. But the good thing is, during my vacation, I was out of the process for three or four weeks. During that period it was really the club, the newly established scouting and recruitment department, that brought in these players," Ten Hag revealed to the Dutch newspaper.
"The fact that there are also Dutch players among them is actually a coincidence. Primarily these were players who were brought in by our organisation. But of course I support them, let that be clear – and we still make the choice together."
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Man United's growing Dutch contingent
De Ligt played under Ten Hag at Ajax before moving to Bavaria. Should he link up with his former manager at Old Trafford, he would be following in the footsteps of fellow Ajax alumni Lisandro Martinez, Antony, and Andre Onana.
Reports in recent weeks suggested that the 24-year-old defender had expressed that he was open to leaving Bayern to join the growing Dutch contingent at United, which now includes Joshua Zirkzee and coaches Ruud van Nistelrooy, Rene Hake and Jelle ten Rouwelaar.
De Ligt joined Bayern Munich from Juventus at the start of the 2022-23 season in a deal worth around £68m, which remains the club's third-most expensive signing behind the acquisitions of Harry Kane and Lucas Hernandez.
After playing virtually every match for the Bavarians in his first season at the club, De Ligt was confined to just 22 league appearances last season, having fallen in the pecking order behind Kim Min-jae and Eric Dier.
The 24-year-old originally signed a five-year contract with the Bundesliga giants that runs until the end of the 2026-27 league season.
Devesh Jaganath
