Man United sent clear Matthijs de Ligt transfer message as 'horrible' claim made amid fresh 'bid'

Nearly 71,000 Bayern Munich fans have signed a petition urging the club not to sell Matthijs de Ligt to Manchester United this summer.

The 24-year-old was a target for United earlier in the window, but Old Trafford chiefs could not agree on a deal with the Bundesliga giants. However, United have verbally agreed personal terms with De Ligt.

However, supporters of Bayern Munich are urging the club not to sell De Ligt just one year after he moved to the Allianz Arena in a £65.5m deal from Juventus. In fact, so outraged at the possibility of selling the defender, an online petition has now reached just shy of 71,000 signatures at the time of writing.

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DeLigt Lad, who started the petition, has explained his reasoning behind the movement: "We all want Matthijs de Ligt to stay at FC Bayern Munich! He has proven that he‘s a world class defender, probably the best in our squad," reads attached to the petition.

"There is a reason why he was elected as our best player in the 2022/23 season. Furthermore, he is only 24 years old and has a bright future ahead, which he is going to use to fulfil his huge potential.

"Despite his young age, Mattha is already very mature and has a great mentality which will definitely make him a leading figure in defence and probably a competitor for captaincy in some years.

"His ability to speak English, German and Dutch fluently would help him a lot for that. With 19 years he already brought Ajax Amsterdam to the UCL semi-finals as captain.

"Selling Matthijs de Ligt would be an absolutely horrible decision and we would