Frenkie de Jong’s lawyers contact authorities over Barcelona’s ‘planned media slander campaign’

Frenkie de Jong is reportedly extremely angry with Barcelona and feels he’s a victim of a planned media slander campaign. 

The midfielder has been involved in a long lasting transfer saga since the start of the summer transfer window. 

Barcelona are desperate to offload the Dutchman due to his high wages in order to balance the books, however, De Jong himself has so far been reluctant to discuss a move away from the Camp Nou. 

Earlier this week, it was reported by The Athletic that Barcelona have threatened legal action over De Jong’s contract. 

The report states that the club told De Jong that they want to annul his current contract and return to the deal he was on before, stating the current terms involved criminality and provide grounds for legal action against those involved. 

However, it seems that De Jong was angered by Barcelona’s latest attempt to convince him to either leave the club or stay at the club with a much lower salary. 

According to Spanish news outlet Mundo Deportivo, De Jong has instructed his lawyers to contact the Association of Spanish footballers(AFE), the international association of professional footballers(FIFPro) and La Liga over Barcelona’s treatment of the 25-year-old. 

De Jong believes that he is the victim of a smear campaign against his image planned by the Catalan club. The report also said that De Jong will be standing firm and will not give in to any demands by the club. 

Despite this never ending saga, it has been reported that De Jong is ‘mentally very strong and positive’ and is eager to start the season as a Barcelona player in order to help his team challenge for the top honours. 

It is believed that De Jong’s relationship with manager Xavi remains ‘very good’ and he is gearing up to be ready for the club's first La Liga match of the 22/23 season, against Rayo Vallecano this weekend.

In the aftermath of this week’s twists, both De Jong and his representatives are choosing to remain silent as they are aware that any statements made at this time could have a negative impact on the player. 

Manchester United remain interested in De Jong if the player decides to part ways with Barcelona. A fee was agreed between the two clubs in July but the deal has stalled ever since. United’s Premier League rivals Chelsea are also thought to be keen on the Dutchman. 

Will De Jong leave or stay at Barcelona? Only time will tell.