Xavi gives De Jong Barcelona hope amid Man Utd links
Karan Tejwani
- 19 Sept 2022 14:50 BST
- 3 min read
Frenkie de Jong has been given some hope about his future at Barcelona with Xavi impressed by his recent performances for the club.
The midfielder was linked with a move to Manchester United all summer but a move never materialized, with the player eager to earn the wages he deferred several years ago.
De Jong was also keener on remaining at the Blaugrana – his dream club – and wants to extend his career for as long as possible with them.
Now, he’s been given some hope in that dream as Xavi sees him as the long-term replacement to Sergio Busquets, who could well leave Barcelona upon the expiry of his contract at the end of the season.
Related articles
Barcelona stay may be possible
De Jong has been playing a deeper midfield role over the course of this season, and that is where Xavi believes he is performing best – and it’s valuable to the squad as well.
Throughout the summer, Xavi has spoken about his desire to keep De Jong at the club and would only consider a sale if the club needed to, so it’s not a surprise that the manager is enjoying his presence in the squad.
In Barcelona’s most recent league win against Elche, De Jong starred in his midfield role and received plaudits from across the Spanish media, after a tough start to the season.
🚨🚨✅| FC Barcelona want Frenkie De Jong to be the leader of their midfield for the coming seasons, replacing Sergio Busquets. Talks will soon begin over his new contract.@gbsans [🎖️]
— Managing Barça (@ManagingBarca) September 19, 2022
There’s now a belief that he’ll continue in the deeper role with a view to being the long-term successor to Busquets, saving Barcelona from having to invest in that position.
Manchester United and Erik ten Hag are believed to still be interested in signing De Jong from Barcelona, but it may be hard to convince him if he’s a first-team regular at the Catalan club.
How he performs over the course of the season will be interesting to observe, and it could affect the transfer activity of two clubs in the long run.
