Frenkie de Jong could still join Manchester United after chiefs at Old Trafford reportedly came up with a last-ditch plan to sign him from Barcelona.
De Jong’s prospective transfer to Manchester United has gone on for most of the summer transfer window. The Red Devils agreed a deal with Barcelona for him, but that has now expired.
Manchester United will need to reach a whole new agreement if they hope to improve their midfield by bringing De Jong in.
One of the main problems for the club has been De Jong’s preference. He ideally wants to remain at Barca but knows the Spanish giants need to sell to improve their finances.
And if the 25-year-old does have to leave the Nou Camp, then reports claim he would rather join Chelsea than United.
Erik ten Hag’s midfield has already been improved by the capture of Casemiro from Real Madrid. The Brazilian cost an initial £60million, which could rise to £70m through add-ons.
Ten Hag thinks Casemiro will be ‘the cement between the stones’ for United. While their director of football John Murtough has explained how the serial winner will improve the dressing room.
Casemiro is a completely different type of midfielder to De Jong though and it seems Ten Hag still wants his fellow Dutchman to join.
According to Dutch football expert Marcel van der Kraan, United have more money to play with in the final part of the transfer window.
Frenkie de Jong to Man Utd remains a possibility
And the Daily Mail, who cite Spanish newspaper Sport, claim United officials have drawn up a final effort to get De Jong’s signing over the line.
They will once again fly out to Catalonia to hold a meeting with their Barca counterparts. The meeting will take place later this week and the priority will be to strike a deal with Xavi’s side.
Once this is done, then United can focus on getting De Jong to agree to personal terms.
It shouldn’t be too hard to get Barca to sign off on De Jong’s exit. While he is an important player for them, getting the Netherlands international off their wage bill would be a big financial boost.
Once again though, convincing De Jong to move to the Theatre of Dreams could be a sticking point. Plus, the playmaker is still owed £17m in wages by Barca, which is another issue.
United briefly set their sights on Juventus’ Adrien Rabiot as an alternative to De Jong. But Ten Hag knows the latter well from his successful time at Ajax.
The manager is clearly pushing the United hierarchy to spend big on his prime target. This final push will show just how willing United are to meet Ten Hag’s demands.
Meanwhile, United could pursue an exciting Premier League attacker if their bid to sign Antony falls through.