PARIS • Matthijs de Ligt has agreed to join Juventus, Dutch and Italian media reported on Monday, but it was not clear whether the Turin club had yet agreed a fee with Ajax.
Reports said that the 19-year-old Dutch defender had agreed personal terms with Juventus and would undergo a medical test today after arriving in Turin yesterday.
Media in Italy said Juventus, who will take on Tottenham in the International Champions Cup on Sunday at the National Stadium in Singapore, would pay Ajax €75 million (S$114.4 million).
The Dutch club had announced on Saturday that de Ligt will skip their pre-season training camp, with the club captain not travelling with the squad while "awaiting a possible transfer".
De Ligt became the club's youngest captain in March last year and has been linked with many of Europe's leading clubs - including Manchester United, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain - after his assured displays for the resurgent Ajax and Dutch national teams last season.
He has played 117 games for Ajax in all competitions, scoring 13 goals, including three in the club's run to the semi-finals of the Champions League last season, only to lose in the dying seconds to Tottenham.
De Ligt also scored the winner in Turin as Ajax eliminated Juventus in the quarter-finals.
In his three seasons at Ajax, he won the Eredivisie and the Dutch Cup, and was Europa League finalist in 2017. The centre-back has also been capped 17 times for the Netherlands.
Earlier on Monday, Juventus unveiled Aaron Ramsey, the Welsh midfielder who had agreed in February to join as a free agent once his contract with Arsenal expired.
Ramsey has said he wants to follow in the footsteps of compatriot and Juventus hero John Charles.
He will have a tough task emulating Charles, who died in 2004 at the age of 72. The Welshman represented the Old Lady with distinction and is a bona fide legend in Turin thanks to a hugely successful five-year spell in the late 1950s and early 60s.
Nicknamed "The Gentle Giant", Charles scored over 100 goals for Juve as they bagged three league titles and two Italian Cups.
"He is an absolute legend over here and for Welsh football as well," Ramsey told reporters.
"He is definitely someone I can look up to and hopefully to follow in his footsteps. He definitely took everything in and left his mark here.
"I know how much he means to this club and the history that he contributed to here."
The 28-year-old, who won three FA Cups in his 11 years at Arsenal and played a key role in Wales reaching the semi-finals of Euro 2016, also said that the move to the Italian champions, who have won the last eight Serie A titles, was one he could not turn down.
"When I knew that Juventus was interested, I couldn't refuse. It's a great club, one of the biggest in the world, and to come here and play for them is a dream," he said.
Ramsey's unveiling comes amid a busy summer for Juventus, who have brought in Maurizio Sarri as coach after removing Massimiliano Allegri at the end of last season.
They have also signed midfielder Adrien Rabiot from Paris Saint-Germain, left-back Luca Pellegrini from Serie A rivals Roma, Merih Demiral and 41-year-old Gianluigi Buffon, who returns to Turin after a year alongside Rabiot in the French capital.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
