Man Utd told they can sign Ten Hag’s favourite player for just €35m

Carlo Garganese

Updated: 6 Aug 2024 12:11 BST
3 min read

Erik ten Hag, Man Utd, 2024/25 — © IMAGO

Barcelona have transfer listed Frenkie de Jong and set an incredibly low asking price for the Dutch midfielder.

Article continues under the video

That is according to reports in Spain, as cited by TeamTalk, which claim that De Jong has an asking price of just €35-40 million.

Barcelona are said to be desperate to get De Jong’s wages off their books and also are concerned that the midfielder is planning to run down his contract that expires in 2026.

The Bluagrana have already rejected a swap offer from Man Utd involving Antony but have made it clear that they would sell for the cash sum above.

According to Sport, Man Utd have made De Jong their primary target to succeed Casemiro, who is up for sale this transfer window.

United’s interest in De Jong is long standing, with current manager Erik ten Hag a huge fan of the player after the worked together at Ajax and reached the 2019 Champions League semi-final.

United made De Jong their primary transfer target in the summer of 2022 and spent much of the window trying to convince him to join.

However, De Jong refused continuously and he ended up staying put at Camp Nou.

© ProShots - De Jong was wanted by Man Utd in 2022

De Jong and Man Utd from 2022

Barcelona are understood to have accepted an €85 million bid from Man Utd in July 2022, and made it clear that they wanted him to move to Old Trafford.

But De Jong refused to join Man Utd and stayed at Barcelona, despite interest from Chelsea and Bayern Munich as well.

United are now returning for the player, who has established himself as one of the best central midfielders in the world since joining Barcelona from Ajax in 2019.

The 27-year-old’s valuation by Barcelona has dropped massively, and the Blaugrana are prepared to sell amidst their well-publicised financial problems.