Liverpool do it again, selling a defender who did not make an appearance for the club after arriving as an emergency back-up in January 2021 for around £4 million.

De Ligt is set to cost Bayern a reported fee of around €70 million that could rise by €10m, potentially matching the fee paid for France international defender Lucas Hernandez.

Bayern had stepped up their pursuit of De Ligt following the departure of Robert Lewandowki to Barcelona. De Ligt had also been a potential target for Chelsea.

The centre back is the German side’s fourth signing of the summer, following the transfer of Sadio Mane from Liverpool, Netherlands midfielder Ryan Gravenberch and right back Noussair Mazraoui, with the latter two both arriving from Ajax.

De Ligt is a former youth product of the Ajax academy and at 19 years old captained the Dutch side to the Champions League semi-finals. He was bought by Juventus that summer but struggled at times in Serie A.

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Bayern Munich have confirmed the signing of defender Matthijs de Ligt from Juventus in a deal that could reportedly equal their record transfer fee if certain add-ons are met.

“I’m very happy to become a player for this great club,” De Ligt said in a statement. “FC Bayern are the most successful club in Germany, one of the most successful clubs in Europe and in the world.

“I felt the genuine appreciation from the sporting management, the coach and the board right from the start, which convinced me. On top of that, FC Bayern is a brilliantly run club with big aims. I’m very glad that I’m now becoming part of the FC Bayern story. “

Centre-back Prensel Kimpembe reportedly wants to stay at Paris Saint-Germain despite Chelsea making a £40m bid for him.

Blues boss Thomas Tuchel is keen to reunite with the 26-year-old Frenchman as he reshapes his defence after the departures of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen but, according to L’Equipe, Kimpembe would prefer to stay at PSG.

Chelsea are still pursuing the like of Sevilla defender Jules Kounde and Man City’s Nathan Ake as alternatives.

Blackpool have signed Liverpool defender Rhys Williams on a season-long loan deal.

The 21-year-old centre-back has made 19 senior appearances for the Reds, and spent the first half of last season on loan at Blackpool’s Championship rivals Swansea.

“I’m so happy to be here and I want to show everyone what I can do this season,” Williams told the official Blackpool website.

“I think I’m aerially dominant because of my height, and I’m a vocal defender. I like to have the ball at my feet too, so hopefully I can play the way the gaffer wants us to play.

“I spoke to him before signing, and he was really complimentary and said only good things about the football club and the journey it’s going on.”

Donny van de Beek believes Manchester United captain Harry Maguire showed “big personality” with his impressive reaction to some merciless booing during the opening stages against Crystal Palace in Melbourne.

The Erik ten Hag era continued with another promising pre-season friendly win on Tuesday evening in Australia, where the Red Devils recorded a 3-1 victory at the cavernous MCG.

Anthony Martial opened the scoring with his third goal in as many games, before Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho finished fine team moves in the second half.

There was a Joel Ward consolation and late red card for United youngster Will Fish but the main talking point in Melbourne was the jeers that met every Maguire touch at the start of the match.

The 29-year-old appeared to win over supporters with an impressive showing and the boos subsided, with team-mate Van de Beek impressed by the way the skipper bounced back.

Djed Spence said the opportunity to play Premier League football with Tottenham Hotspur was “a dream come true” after completing his move from Middlesbrough.

The right-back signed a five-year contract with Antonio Conte’s side following a deal believed to be worth an initial £12.5million, potentially rising to £20m due to add-ons.

Spence, who is Spurs’ sixth arrival of the summer, has spent his entire career in the Sky Bet Championship, including helping Nottingham Forest to promotion last season during a successful loan switch from Boro.

“It’s amazing, I’m thankful that I’m here and that I’m going to get the opportunity to play for this club,” he told Tottenham’s website.

“It’s been a long journey in my career so far, it’s been hard at times but it’s been good as well, and I’ve been working hard to get to where I am now.”

Arsenal have agreed a £30m deal with Manchester City to sign Oleksandr Zinchenko, which includes £2m in add-ons, and the transfer is likely to be completed this week

The Ukraine international is expected to fly back to England from City’s pre-season tour of the US in the coming days to complete the move. A contract until June 2026 has been agreed, according to David Ornstein and Fabrizio Romano.

Zinchenko is mostly a left-back for City but generally plays further forward for Ukraine, so Arsenal would have options with the versatile 25-year-old.

Tottenham make Djed Spence sixth signing of summer transfer window

Tottenham Hotspur have completed the signing of defender Djed Spence from Middlesbrough on a contract until 2027.

Right-back Spence becomes the sixth player to join Spurs this summer to continue the club’s spending spree.

It is understood the deal is worth an initial £12.5million but could rise to £20million due to add-ons.

Since Antonio Conte’s side secured Champions League football on the final day of the 2021-22 campaign, Tottenham have changed tack in the transfer window and moved fast to put together a squad capable of challenging on multiple fronts for the upcoming season.

The addition of Spence follows earlier moves for Ivan Perisic, Fraser Forster, Yves Bissouma, Richarlison and Clement Lenglet.

In addition to Armando Broja, West Ham are also well in the hunt for two more of their transfer targets.

The Evening Standard says West Ham are confident of signing Amadou Onana from Lille. The Hammers made a fresh bid of £30m plus add-ons for the 20-year-old Belgium midfielder over the weekend, with club bosses confident the figure will be enough to get them over the line.

The same paper also reports that West Ham’s long-standing interest in former loanee Jesse Lingard could be coming to fruition. The 29-year-old midfielder is currently a free agent after his Manchester United contract expired last month and is expected to make an announcement on his future this week.

West Ham bosses believe they are in the driver’s seat for his signature, though Lingard is thought to be considering a lucrative offer from Saudi Arabia.