Bayern Munich will rival Barcelona for highly rated Ajax defender Matthijs de Ligt at the end of the season, reports Mundo Deportivo.
Barcelona have been heavily linked with a summer move for the 18-year-old all season despite the arrival of Yerry Mina from Palmeiras in January.
Ernesto Valverde is still determined to bolster his defensive options given Gerard Pique and Thomas Vermaelen are both the wrong side of 30.
Samuel Umtiti’s future at the Camp Nou is also uncertain but Barcelona can expect stiff competition from Bayern for the services of De Ligt.
Bayern are also well stocked at centre-back but have cast an eye on the future as Jerome Boateng and Mats Hummels both turn 30 later this year.
De Ligt has continued to impress during his first full season as a professional and has even captained Ajax on occasions this term.
Of Eredivisie players that have started at least 20 matches this season, only Stijn Wuytens (67.4) and Fredrik Midtsjo (64) average more passes per game than De Ligt (63).
Excited to see where this talent ends up. Has performed well whenever I have watched him play. Barcelona seems the natural fit out of the two clubs linked