Liverpool eyeing shock swoop for Matthijs de Ligt

Liverpool are ready to steal a march on Manchester United and Chelsea with a shock swoop to sign Juventus centre-back Matthijs de Ligt, according to reports via TeamTalk.

De Ligt has been constantly linked with a move to the Premier League since emerging as one of the best young defenders in Europe during his time at Ajax and the rumours haven’t stopped since he joined Juve in 2019.

His time in Turin hasn’t quite gone to plan and speculation is once again linking the Dutchman with a move to England with Chelsea and Manchester United among those expressing an interest [as per TeamTalk].

Chelsea are in the market for defensive reinforcements after losing Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen this summer and it appears Thomas Tuchel is eyeing de Ligt as a possible replacement.

Man Utd are also being tipped to bring in a new centre-back as Erik ten Hag looks to revamp the squad he inherited from Ralf Rangnick, and de Ligt could be viewed as an upgrade on Harry Maguire – who struggled last season.

However, it looks like United and Chelsea face even more competition as Corriere dello Sport claims that Liverpool are also eyeing a move for de Ligt this summer.

The Italian outlet says the 22-year-old is struggling to agree terms over a new deal at Juventus and the Serie A giants may cash-in if at least £60m [€70m] is put on the table.

In addition to this, Corriere Torino also claims that Liverpool are hoping to sign de Ligt this summer with Jurgen Klopp ready to offer the Dutchman a starting spot alongside compatriot Virgil van Dijk.

Surprise links

It must be said that these rumours come as a surprise as many news outlets here in England suggest that Klopp’s transfer business is already done after signing Darwin Nunez, Fabio Carvalho and Calvin Ramsay.

Not only that, but a new centre-back is arguably the last thing Liverpool need right now as Klopp appears well stocked in defence. Ibrahima Konate has settled well since arriving at Anfield while Joel Matip has just come off the back of another excellent campaign.

Obviously van Dijk is one of the best centre-backs in the world and Liverpool also have Joe Gomez on their books so it would be a major shock if the Merseysiders decided to splash out £60m on de Ligt this summer.

We’ll have to wait and see how things develop but the likelihood is that if de Ligt does finally come to the Premier League this year, he’ll end up at Chelsea or United and not Liverpool.