Why Man Utd are looking to reunite De Jong and Ten Hag

Cameron Smith

• 22 Apr 2022 15:12 BST
• 5 min read

Manchester United could begin the Erik ten Hag era by reuniting their new head coach with one of the young talents he moulded into a star back at Ajax.

Ralf Rangnick has revealed that the Old Trafford club are set to undergo a summer rebuild with as many as 10 new arrivals replacing players such as Nemanja Matic, Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard, all of whom are expected to depart.

With Ten Hag in charge, there's a clear vision of where the club is heading and by appointing one of Europe's most exciting, young managers, Man Utd can begin the healing process after years of heartache.

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Although there are issues spready across the entire Man Utd squad, there is one clear position in need: defensive midfield.

It's been an issue the club have tried to fix in the past, but have never succeeded. Fred and the aforementioned Matic and Pogba have failed to stamp their authority and take the starting shirt with force, while academy product Scott McTominay perhaps isn't disciplined, nor talented, enough to play as a holding midfielder for the club.

Yves Bissouma, Declan Rice and Konrad Laimer have all been linked over the past year or so, while Ten Hag is reportedly a huge fan of Monaco star Aurelien Tchouameni, according to ESPN.

However, reports from Spain have emerged that Man Utd are targeting Frenkie de Jong to solve their defensive midfield hole.

Diario Sport have revealed that Man Utd want to sign De Jong to pair him back up with Ten Hag and rekindle their relationship. Barcelona reportedly aren't keen to sell and there's been no inkling that the player wants to leave either, but the lure of Ten Hag could entice De Jong into switching the Camp Nou for Old Trafford.

What would De Jong bring to Man Utd?

A former dynamite of Ten Hag's Ajax midfield, De Jong is someone who has struggled to replicate that kind of form at Barcelona. He was sold by Ajax for around €91 million back in 2019, but three years since the move he still hasn't quite hit the levels he displayed in the Netherlands.

He excelled on the European stage, but since joining Barca he hasn't looked the same player. It was believed that he was signed as a long-term replacement for Sergio Busquets, but at 33 years old the Spaniard still continues to impress and De Jong hasn't been able to displace him.

As a result, the Dutch international has mostly been deployed as a box-to-box midfielder with more freedom and less need to dictate play, especially this season. However, this has seen his passes per 90 drop considerably from 74.2 completed passes P90 last year, to just 53.9 this time around. He's been less involved in play, which doesn't suit him.

Playing further forward has restricted his defensive work as well. De Jong is now completing 1.5 tackles and interceptions per 90 this season, but that tally stood at 3.1 during his final year at Ajax. Ten Hag's team were just as dominant in their division back then as Barcelona are now, if not more so, meaning there's little explanation for that decline other than a position alteration.

However, his attacking contribution has improved. He sits on three goals and three assists in La Liga this term, while his non-penalty xG and xA ranks in the top three percent of midfielders across Europe.

Crucially for Man Utd, he has shown he is capable of playing in a deep midfield position and he possesses the progressive passing ability that is sorely lacking with a double pivot of Fred and McTominay.

With the recent additions of Pedri and Gavi to the senior squad have provided De Jong with competition. The Spanish duo are seen as the great hopes of this Barcelona side, and despite his talent, De Jong could find himself on the fringes.

He's played well in patches during his Barca spell, but he's yet to dominate a game like he did under Ten Hag's tenure.

For that reason, a move away could be a good option as a fresh start for one of Europe's best midfielders on his day.

De Jong under Ten Hag

Frenkie de Jong was yet to fully make his mark at Ajax when Ten Hag arrived in December 2017. The midfielder had featured infrequently in the senior team and even filled in at centre-back more often than playing in the middle of the park due to the departure of Davinson Sanchez to Tottenham.

However, Ten Hag changed all that. He transformed De Jong from a prodigious talent into a world star.

The Dutchman was the heartbeat of Ten Hag's Ajax side, and with a dominating display against Luka Modric at the Santiago Bernabeu in the Champions League he was thrust into the spotlight.

He was moulded into an all-round midfielder capable of controlling a game by himself and Ten Hag is to thank.

A reunion between the two could create something special and De Jong would be the perfect player for Man Utd to sign in order to kickstart their summer business.