Chelsea have been told to think twice before completing the signing of Matthijs de Ligt this summer, with a number of red flags brought to light. The 22-year-old has been heavily linked with a move to Stamford Bridge, though Bayern Munich have emerged as strong competition for the defender's signature.
According to SPORT1, the Netherlands international has verbally agreed to join the German giants and negotiations between the two clubs will begin shortly. The report adds that a deal between Juventus and Bayern will only fall through if a fee can not be agreed, with personal terms not believed to be an issue.
However, while the Bundesliga champions may have been granted a verbal blessing, Chelsea are edging closer to reaching an agreement with the Old Lady for De Ligt's signature, claims CBS journalist Ben Jacobs. And, the west Londoners are said to be pushing to complete the signing, with Massimiliano Allegri's side slowly relaxing their asking price.
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Jacobs outlines that the Blues are hoping to pay between £60million and £65million for the Dutchman, but Juventus are steering Todd Boehly towards the £70million mark. However, De Ligt, who sees his deal with the Turin-based side expire in 2024, has a €120million (£103m) release clause in his contract which could pose a problem.
And, according to Steve McManaman, Chelsea should steer clear of paying the aforementioned fee. Speaking to Horseracing.net, the former Liverpool and Real Madrid midfielder said: "He wouldn’t go for £103million. There’s absolutely no chance. Not on the form he’s in. But the good thing is that he’s a very good and talented player."
McManaman added by insisting that he feels sorry for De Ligt having been thrown in the deep end at Juventus after such a steep transition after leaving Ajax. He said: "Maybe Juventus was the wrong club, at the wrong time. They were in a huge transitional period when he went there.
"They struggled, they went through different managers. Of course, they played about four or five different defenders with him - Bonucci and Chiellini have been injured and now Chiellini’s left for LA at 37 years old - so I almost felt sorry for him. I don’t think his form is what we’ve seen."
McManaman concluded by detailing how De Ligt could prove his doubters wrong at Chelsea, should he leave Juventus, noting Thomas Tuchel's play style as key factor. He said: "I think he’s a better player than what we’ve seen and maybe he’ll be better in a better team that has more possession of the ball, with a different style of football.
"With all respect to the different leagues, Ajax’s style in the Eredivisie was different to Juve’s in Serie A. So I think you’d definitely take a chance on De Ligt - but there’s no way you would pay a record £103m for him! Not from what we’ve seen over the last couple of years."
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