Erik ten Hag has welcomed Manchester United’s pursuit of Bayern Munich defender Matthijs de Ligt.
The pair worked together at Ajax, winning the Eredivisie together in 2019.
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Centre-back Leny Yoro joined the club this week, but United will still need to sufficiently replace Raphael Varane and Willy Kambwala.
Now, boss Ten Hag has broken his silence on rumours of signing his former defender, who joined Bayern in 2022.
Speaking to AD Sportwereld, Ten Hag said: ''We still have to wait and see whether De Ligt will come.
“But the good thing is, during my vacation I was out of the process for three or four weeks.
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"During that period it was really the club, the newly established scouting and recruitment department, that brought in these players.
“The fact that there are also Dutch players among them is actually a coincidence. Primarily these were players who were brought in by our organisation.
"But of course I support them, let that be clear – and we still make the choice together.”
He continued: ''I know Matthijs well, of course, I'm not going to deny that.
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“Two years ago I already wanted to get him, but he was already very far along with Bayern Munich.
"But believe it or not, he didn't come specifically from my head in this process.''
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United have already got fans excited by their transfer business this summer.
Teenage defender Yoro has signed from Lille for £52million, whilst Bologna forward Joshua Zirkzee has also joined for £36million.
talkSPORT understands United have also stepped up their interest in Paris Saint-Germain Manuel Ugarte.
The Red Devils have had bids for Everton centre-back Jarrard Branthwaite, but they have fallen short of the Toffees’ £70million asking price.
And Ten Hag believes that under new investors INEOS, the club is making the correct steps to progress, despite the scouting and recruiting departments taking control of making a list of transfer targets.
“I know that it creates a certain image, of course I understand how that works,” he stated.
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“But ultimately the criterion that counts above all else is: is the player good or not good? Does he fit in terms of character, age and of course the quality that we are looking for.”
De Ligt made 30 appearances for Bayern last term, scoring two goals and bagging one assist as the German outfit finished third in the Bundesliga.