Gavi: I was screwed if Barcelona sold De Jong
Robin Bairner
- 4 Oct 2023 10:23 BST
- 3 min read
Barcelona ace Gavi says that he would have been “screwed” if Manchester United had been successful in signing Frenkie de Jong from the Camp Nou side.
Man Utd spent the summer of 2022 pushing to sign Netherlands international De Jong from Barcelona, which was a deal made possible by the Catalan side’s poor financial position.
Indeed, the animosity between De Jong and Barcelona was such that the Camp Nou board were threatening to take legal action against the former Ajax star over his contract. They had even accepted a bid from the Red Devils for the player, only for the Dutchman to refuse to move.
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Gavi, for one, has breathed a huge sigh of relief at this, explaining to RAC1 that De Jong is his idol.
“The person I admire the most is De Jong. When they said he could leave, I was screwed,” he explained.
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De Jong, who has been at Barcelona since 2019, instead became a fulcrum of head coach Xavi’s plans, playing a key role as Barca won LaLiga last season.
Although Man Utd were still tentatively linked with a move for the central midfielder at points last summer, any speculation quickly died away. There is, however, a simmering belief that Erik ten Hag would still love to be reunited with him if possible.
And though Barcelona may still have to sell at least one major star next summer due to their finances, it looks unlikely to be the 26-year-old, with contract talks now open and the scars apparently healed.
Gavi’s other idols
2022 Golden Boy winner Gavi added that De Jong is not the only player who he models his game on, stating: “I especially idolised Andres Iniesta but also Marco Verratti and Isco.”
And asked why he loves Barcelona, having grown up in Andalusia, he revealed it was Pep Guardiola’s team, known for their technical brand of tiki-taka football that his game his modelled upon, that fired his love for the club.
“It comes from seeing the best team in history, Xavi's Barca, Iniesta and company. From that moment I was from Barca and I will always be,” he explained.
Gavi has already made more than 100 appearances for Barcelona’s first team, scoring seven goals in the process. There are a great many more to come.
