In the summer of 2022, Manchester United attempted to sign Frenkie de Jong, a midfield player who was reportedly dissatisfied with Barcelona’s handling of the planned trade.
In 2022, Frenkie de Jong expressed his displeasure with Barcelona’s handling of the matter when Manchester United expressed interest in signing the midfield player.
After he was named the team’s new permanent manager about eighteen months ago, Erik ten Hag declared the Netherlands international his priority transfer target. During a protracted summer transfer window, United and Barcelona were able to agree on a price of about £56 million for De Jong, but personal issues were yet to be worked out.
De Jong stayed put at Barcelona while United eventually signed Christian Eriksen and Casemiro, therefore the transfer never happened. After making 43 appearances for Barcelona in all competitions the previous season, De Jong has been Xavi Hernandez’s staple thus far this season.
However, Sport claims that the 26-year-old’s connection with the club’s board was strained as a result of his outrage at Barcelona’s attempted sale of him. De Jong is said to have “calmed down” at this point, and the player-club relationship is currently being restored.
Barcelona are also trying to tie De Jong down to a new long-term deal, after starting six of their opening seven matches before spraining his ankle. De Jong’s current Barcelona contract is set to run out in 2026, but the club want him to take a pay cut for the next two years.
It is unknown whether De Jong will agree to that proposal, although Barcelona do see him as one of the best midfielders in world football. He has played 190 matches for the Catalan side since his big-money move from Ajax in 2019, winning the Copa del Rey and La Liga along the way.
De Jong has become a favourite of Xavi over the past 12 months and the Barcelona boss admitted he was surprised to see the amount of criticism he has faced, having forced his way back into the side. “A footballer who is a 10 is an eight,” he said earlier this month.
“A player who is an eight is a six. That’s why it’s the most difficult club in the world for players. Frenkie is one of the best in the world. And he is when he trains. That’s why some people are surprised. They see him training and they think: why is he so criticised.”
Barcelona have got a plethora of talent in midfield at their disposal. Gavi, Ilkay Gundogan and Fermin Lopez started as a three in their most recent outing against Granada, leaving Oriol Romeu and Sergi Roberto on the bench. De Jong and Pedri were both unavailable for that match.