Man City is considering a £90 million Frenkie de Jong deal, which would outbid competitors. United away
Erik ten Hag, manager of Manchester United, sought to sign Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong a year ago after working with the Dutch international at Ajax.
Manchester City are interested in signing Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong, who was previously linked with Manchester United.
The Red Devils spent much of the summer attempting to sign De Jong, 26, who played for Ajax under Erik ten Hag. The Netherlands international refused to leave the Camp Nou, forcing United to make a late move for Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta recently acknowledged that an anonymous club, most likely Manchester United, made a €100 million (£86 million) proposal for De Jong a year ago, but it was insufficient. Pep Guardiola, the manager of Manchester City, is now interested in signing him and is willing to pay £90 million.
Guardiola is looking for a new central midfielder after Treble winner Ilkay Gundogan joined Barcelona on a free transfer. Despite the arrival of Mateo Kovacic from Chelsea, City made an unsuccessful £90 million bid for West Ham captain Declan Rice.
Rice is expected to join Arsenal in a £105 million move after the Hammers turned down that bid. According to The Sun, this has pushed Guardiola to look elsewhere, with De Jong on his transfer wishlist following four successful seasons in Spain.
De Jong has appeared in 183 games for Barcelona and is one of Xavi's main players at the Camp Nou, where he helped the club win the La Liga title and the Spanish Super Cup last season. The former Eredivisie Player of the Season also helped Barcelona win the Spanish Cup.
In February, Xavi pondered De Jong's future. "I am very happy and satisfied with his performance and leadership," he remarked. He, like the rest of the crew, is having a fantastic time. I believe he is enjoying himself on the pitch, which is the most important thing."
De Jong has three years left on his contract, but it's been said that Barcelona would be happy to remove his large salary off their books. It would be a slap in the face for Ten Hag if De Jong joined City following last year's failed transfer attempt.
In a recent interview with TV3, Laporta disclosed the massive £86 million proposal for De Jong. "It happened last year, and we were worse," Barcelona's president stated. We received a €100 million offer for De Jong and were correct not to take it.
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