Louis van Gaal has already made feelings clear as Man Utd make Matthijs de Ligt U-turn
Former Manchester United Louis van Gaal didn't even offer his former club as a potential option for Matthijs de Ligt when transfer speculation abounded in 2019
Louis van Gaal previously made his thoughts perfectly clear on Matthijs de Ligt and Manchester United.
When United were first interested in the central defender in 2019, Van Gaal listed three other clubs he should consider instead of the Red Devils. Five years later, the 24-year-old ignored his advice by agreeing personal terms with Erik ten Hag's side.
Despite being Ten Hag's captain at Ajax, interest in the Bayern Munich defender has now cooled, with United on the cusp of signing £52million defender Leny Yoro, who completed a medical at the club yesterday. With the chances of De Ligt joining the club now depending on any future sales, Van Gaal may be happy the player he coached with the Netherlands is no longer heading to the club he left in 2016.
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When Van Gaal was asked who De Ligt should join by Ziggo Sport in 2019, Van Gaal said: "De Ligt at Juventus? I think De Ligt can play in any competition.
"In Italy, they are the masters of defence, so he can best develop there. If I had the chance I would go to Barcelona. They have central defenders who are not too good, so he will play there.
"Or I would go to Manchester City. I don't think the central defenders are that great either, so he'll play there too."
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Yoro's arrival came as a surprise to many fans, as it initially appeared the Lille defender was holding out for a move to Real Madrid, reports the Mirror. Instead, he will fill the huge void left by Raphael Varane, whose contract expired at the end of June.
Ten Hag will have Yoro, Harry Maguire, Lisandro Martinez, Victor Lindelof, and Jonny Evans to call upon in central defence this season. With their defensive line-up now bolstered, a move for another central defender appears unlikely, unless there are sales.
Nevertheless, there is still speculation surrounding possible exits for Maguire and Lindelof. United opted to extend the latter's contract by a year last season, to keep him from leaving on a free transfer at the same time as Varane.
Meanwhile, West Ham have shown interest in Maguire and are reportedly in talks over signing right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka. So far, United have been active in the transfer market, recently heralding the £36.54m signing of Bologna's forward and young talent, Joshua Zirkzee.