Exclusive: Man Utd must take one crucial step before signing another CB alongside Yoro, says expert

Manchester United need to focus on player sales before proceeding any further with a potential transfer deal for Bayern Munich defender Matthijs de Ligt, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside for his latest Daily Briefing column, Romano explained that Man Utd are closing in on the signing of Leny Yoro, meaning that offloading some players will now be crucial for them to be able to afford De Ligt as well.

The transfer news expert has made it clear that the Red Devils want more than one signing in defence this summer, so it seems the De Ligt saga is not over yet, but it might require some patience as raising funds from some player departures looks like it needs to happen first.

United fans will be hoping no one ends up hijacking the De Ligt deal in this time, but at the moment there doesn’t seem to be any sign of that, while there are surely quite a few players they can sell as they won’t be key first-teamers moving forward, but might well be of interest to numerous other clubs elsewhere.

De Ligt transfer situation explained by Fabrizio Romano

“United have been able to sign a fantastic defender, it (Leny Yoro) looks like a really great signing. Some fans have been asking me about what this deal means for the interest in Matthijs de Ligt – for now, the discussions have been positive and advanced but now for Man United it’s time to think about the outgoings,” Romano said.

“Man United still want one more centre-back but selling players is absolutely crucial for them, this is why the Matthijs de Ligt story remains open but not imminent now.”

If MUFC could bring in both Yoro and De Ligt this summer that would be a significant upgrade to their current defence, with the likes of Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof surely no longer good enough to be regular starters for Erik ten Hag’s side.