Celtic are reportedly battling Liverpool for MVV Maastricht starlet Xavier Mbuyamba.
MVV Maastricht coach Ron Elsen has admitted that the second tier side are powerless to prevent Xavier Mbuyamba leaving this summer with the likes of Celtic and Liverpool apparently tracking the talented defender, speaking to De Limburger.
The versatile defender made his debut for MVV at the age of just 16 and he has gone on to establish himself as one of the most promising teenagers in Dutch football, making 11 appearances during the 2018/19 campaign.
And it seems very unlikely that Mbuyamba will still be a Maastricht player by the time next season kicks off.
Voetbal International reports that Celtic, Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Porto are all circling with the teenager currently on trial at Chelsea despite the London giants still being under a transfer ban.
And Elsen has admitted that Mbuyamba is likely to bid farewell in the near future with MVV failing to tie their prized asset down to professional terms.
“He has an amateur contract. So he can be taken over in no time,” Elsen admitted, pointing out that MVV did offer Mbuyamba a three-year deal.
“MVV cannot of course compete with a top club like Chelsea.”
Interestingly, Mbuyamba has been labelled the ‘new Virgil van Dijk’ in some quarters due to an apparent stylistic similarity with the defender who shone at Celtic before making a world-record £75 million move to Liverpool in January 2018.
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