Chelsea have been linked with a move for Juventus defender Matthijs de Ligt, and the 22-year-old has become a priority signing for the Blues.

With Chelsea seeking to strengthen the defence following the departure of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen, De Ligt has been one of the names linked with a move to Chelsea.

According to Football Italia, Chelsea have tabled a bid of €80 million for the 22-year-old centre-back, which is an improvement on the club’s initial offer of €46 million-plus Timo Werner that was rejected by the Serie A giants.

Reports from Germany now claim that Chelsea are set to miss out on signing Matthijs de Ligt as the Juventus defender has verbally agreed to join Bayern Munich.

According to Sport1, De Ligt has verbally agreed to join the Bundesliga champions.

The report claims that De Ligt initially wanted to join Bayern ahead of Juve in 2019, while talks with the German club’s sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic and head coach Julian Nagelsmann have helped convince him to make the move this summer.

Former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rafael van der Vaart, has now urged De Ligt to choose Bayern Munich over Chelsea.

“I would be happy for Matthijs,” Van der Vaart told Sport1.

“It would be the right move for him. He is a fantastic player who is good with the ball. He is young, but already a top defender. And also a good person. Matthijs would be a perfect fit for Bayern.”

Bayern have lost centre-back Nicklas Sule on a free transfer to rivals Borussia Dortmund this summer, and Van der Vaart believes signing De Ligt would represent a significant upgrade for Bayern.

“I’ve never been a big fan of Sule,” Van der Vaart explained.

“If you replace him with De Ligt, you will certainly improve. De Ligt is clearly better. It is a transfer for the future.”