Barcelona news : Samuel Umtiti to move to Man Utd as part of Matthijs De Ligt Barcelona deal

Barcelona are preparing to sell their defender Samuel Umtiti to fund a move for Matthijs De Ligt.

Barcelona’s interest on Matthijs De Ligt has been well-known to the public when the club president Josep Bartomeu confirmed his interest on the defender. The defender has been one of the leading young players over a year now by taking over the club’s armband at the age of 18.

Aged just 19, De Ligt has already made over 100 appearances for his club and has formed a formidable partnership with Virgil Van Dijk for the Netherlands at the back. The Ajax defender captained his side to a stellar 4-1 win over Real Madrid in the Champions League at Santiago Bernabeu last month.

The Blaugrana, who have already signed Frenkie De Jong from the Dutch giants are looking to bring his fellow teammate with him to Nou Camp in the forthcoming summer window. Since the midfielder already cost 90 million euros, the reigning Spanish Champions are looking to sell one of their stars in order to fund a move for the young sensation, Matthijs De Ligt.

According to the English publication Dailymail, the Blaugrana are willing to sell their defender Samuel Umtiti in order to generate funds for the transfer of Matthijs De Ligt. The report also added that Manchester United have registered their interest on the Frenchman and would like to lure him to Old Trafford after scouting him while he was on International duty against Iceland.

The player himself answered that he would be staying at Nou Camp next season. In an interview with Telefoot, the former Lyon defender was told to give a one-word answer about his future at Barcelona, and he was not hesitant by replying ‘Yes’. He also said that he would like to see his fellow compatriot Antoine Griezmann at the club, and sees himself playing in the left side of the defense along with Jordi Alba.

De Ligt prefers to play in the right side of the defense and it does not make sense for the Blaugrana to cash in on their star defender who has age in his side. Despite turning only 25, the concerns over his knee might force the club to sell him before it’s too late to recoup a huge lump.

Gerard Pique is wanting to compete for club president’s elections in 2021 and will hang up his boots in a year. Clement Lenglet, who signed from Sevilla is playing second fiddle to Samuel Umtiti. Besides these two defenders, Jean-Clair Todibo was bought from Toulouse in the winter window, but he is anticipated to be loaned out or sold should De Ligt join the club. Jeison Murillo is another defender, but the club are unlikely to sign him on a permanent deal.

Despite being touted to move away from the club this summer, the club will be hesitant to listen to offers for Samuel Umtiti. Realistically, if Barcelona do sign Matthijs De Ligt, the possibility of a transfer away from the club for Ivan Rakitic and Philippe Coutinho is higher than the former Lyon defender.

According to the Spanish publication Onda Cero, Matthijs De Ligt will move to Barcelona in a deal worth 65 million euros in the forthcoming summer window.

On the other hand, Manchester United are looking to sign a new center-back in order to bolster their defensive department. The English outfit were desperate to land a defender last summer, but the likes of Kalidou Koulibaly, Diego Godin, Milan Skriniar, Toby Alderweireld, Raphael Varane, and Harry Maguire decided to stay put at the club.

It will be interesting to see how things pan out in the summer transfer window as the Blaugrana will be desperate to act decisively in the transfer window.

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Barcelona will take on Espanyol in the La Liga at Nou Camp on Saturday as the club prepare to run away with the league title.