Manchester United have signed French defender Leny Yoro from Lille until 2029 in a deal worth 62m euros (£52.18m), with 8m euros (£6.73m) in add-ons.

The 18-year-old centre-back has signed a five-year contract at Old Trafford, with the option for an additional 12 months.

Yoro, who made his Lille debut at the age of 16, had been linked with Real Madrid and Paris St-Germain, while Liverpool were also interested in him.

He played 32 times in the league last season and scored two goals as he helped Lille finish fourth and and was named in the Ligue 1 team of the season.

“Signing for a club with the stature and ambition of Manchester United so early in my career is an incredible honour,” said Yoro.

“Since my first conversations with the club, they set out a clear plan for how I can develop in Manchester as part of this exciting project, and showed a lot of care for me and my family.

“I know about the history of young players at Manchester United and feel it can be the perfect place to reach my potential and achieve my ambitions, together with my new team-mates. I cannot wait to get started.”

Yoro made 44 appearances in all competitions for the Ligue 1 side, who reached the quarter-finals of the Europa Conference League before being knocked out on penalties by Aston Villa.

Yoro’s arrival follows United’s recent signing of forward Joshua Zirkzee, 23, in a £36.5m deal from Italian side Bologna and comes during a summer in which the club have been trying to bring in a central defender.

“Leny is one of the most exciting young defenders in world football; he possesses every attribute needed to develop into a top-class centre-back,” said United sporting director Dan Ashworth.

United have lodged two bids with Everton for Jarrad Branthwaite but both have been rejected, with the Merseysiders understood to value him in excess of £75m.

In addition, United have been negotiating with Bayern Munich for their Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt.

Sources say while the club remain interested in Branthwaite and De Ligt, they would not sign both and further arrivals are likely to depend on squad space and available funds.

Raphael Varane left the club at the end of the season and there are doubts over the future of Sweden’s Victor Lindelof, whose contract expires next year.

Harry Maguire was the subject of bids from rival Premier League clubs last summer but opted to remain at Old Trafford and eventually made 22 Premier League appearances.

Simon Stone, Chief football news reporter

There are some familiar noises coming out of Old Trafford in the wake of this transfer.

Yoro was linked with some major European clubs, including Real Madrid, and his quote in the statement accompanying the signing about United having a “clear plan” for his development and the “care” shown for the teenager and his family seemed pointed.

It is not unusual for United – or anyone else for that matter – to stress the positives around a new arrival.

But there is an underlying theme. In Raphael Varane – and more particularly Anthony Martial – United are replacing older, injury-prone, underperforming players, with youngsters of verve, energy and promise.

United’s new ownership structure want the club to feel like that, a shedding of its skin as part of a conviction better times are ahead.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe is continuing to deliver but the time was always going to come when his new outlook would be tested. The faith placed in Yoro and Zirkzee is immense. It won’t be long before we discover whether the faith is justified and this is going to be a different United, or just more of the same with different wrapping paper.