Man City another option for Barcelona’s Frenkie de Jong

Barcelona prepared to listen to offers for former Ajax star

There is going to be a mini-revolution at Barcelona once the season is over. It’s going to be a busy transfer window with a number of players leaving as the club wants to make a number of signings as well as lower the wage bill.

The economic situation at the club is well-known which means some difficult decisions may have to be made.

This situation is a major contributing factor as to why Frenkie de Jong’s name has been linked with a move away from the Camp Nou.

The Dutch midfielder was linked with a move to Manchester United recently, fueled by the arrival of his former Ajax manager, Erik ten Hag. But De Jong wants to play Champions League football next season, complicating his arrival to Old Trafford.

Now Manchester’s other team has reportedly entered the race for De Jong. According to Sport, Manchester City is interested in the 25-year-old and is studying the possibility of a move.

The report claims Manchester United were willing to offer as much as €85 million, an amount City are not prepared to match. Instead, City will try to include a player in any potential negotiation to reduce the transfer fee. Barcelona had been linked to Bernardo Silva in the past.

Barcelona are only interested in a transfer fee, however, and have set a €100 million price tag.

The Catalan side realize De Jong is one of the few players on their squad who has a market and can bring a good return in terms of a transfer fee.

Though Xavi Hernandez continually praised De Jong, saying how important he is to his side, he also understands the moment the club is in.

"“I have said many times that Frenkie is very important. He’s a key player,” the Barcelona manager stated at a press conference.“Then there is also the financial situation of the club and it has to be decided. I’m not talking about Frenkie, in general.”Source: Manchester Evening News"

If it were up to Xavi, De Jong wouldn’t be going anywhere.

The ultimate decision will come down to the player and De Jong has made it clear he wants to stay at Barcelona. He said he’ll only leave if he is pushed out by the club, something they aren’t going to do.

As it stands, Barcelona seem to be leaning toward keeping De Jong but will listen should a good offer come in. Xavi has made his position clear. Now it’s a wait-and-see if Barcelona are presented an offer too good to turn down.