Manchester United and Frenkie de Jong is the summer romance that never ends, although that does imply that the feeling is reciprocated. Ever since Erik ten Hag took charge at Old Trafford, there have been links between the two, and once again United have contacted Barcelona about the Dutch midfielder.
Many had believed any chance Barcelona had to sell de Jong was dead in the water after his ankle injury turned out to be more serious than first thought. The 27-year-old is supposedly part of Hansi Flick’s plans, but Manchester World say that Manchester United have made a ‘tentative’ approach for de Jong, calling to see if he would be available. A rough fee of €35-47m is mentioned.
Flick has blind faith in Marc Casadó and Marc Bernal. @ffpolo
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) August 7, 2024
Even if Flick is keen to hang onto de Jong, finances may take over for Barcelona. According to some reports, including the deferred salary payments, de Jong is the highest paid player in La Liga, with a gross wage of over €30m per annum. He has also shown little interest in renewing his contract, up in 2026, and if they cannot agree a new one, it would make sense for Barcelona to sell now.
All of this remains redundant if United and ten Hag cannot convince de Jong to make the switch. Barcelona have been willing to sell before, but have not had his green light.
