Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong is believed to be interested in joining Bayern Munich if a move to Manchester United doesn’t materialise.
Earlier this week, it was reported that the Old Trafford club have reached an agreement with Barcelona to sign the Dutch midfielder for an initial fee of €75m (£63.7m) and a further €10m (£8.5m) in performance related add ons.
Despite an agreement between the two clubs, the deal still has a long way to go before completion. De Jong has never expressed his desire to leave the Catalan club, he has previously described joining Barcelona as his ‘dream’ move.
The Dutch international was named in Xavi’s squad for the Spanish giants’ pre season tour of the United States.
Official. Frenkie de Jong is included in the squad of Barcelona's pre-season tour in US. 🚨🛩🇳🇱 #FCB
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 16, 2022
Still no changes: no agreement on player side with Manchester United, no intention to leave as things stand. The clubs have agreed €75m fee plus €10m in add-ons. pic.twitter.com/1lnDwwDuVV
New United boss Erik ten Hag has told the club to do everything they can to get the deal for the 25-year-old over the line. Ten Hag sees De Jong as the focal point of his plans at Old Trafford.
Barcelona are willing to sell De Jong as they are in financial difficulties and the midfielder is one of the club’s top earners. But the general feeling is that the player simply does not want to leave the Nou Camp.
Erik ten Hag has told John Murtough and Richard Arnold that even if Frenkie de Jong hasn't arrived by the season opener - 7th of August - they should continue the chase. [@JamieJackson___] #mufc
— The United Stand (@UnitedStandMUFC) July 16, 2022
According to Spanish news outlet Sport, Chelsea have been keeping tabs on De Jong’s situation but it is believed that the player is not interested in joining the Stamford Bridge club.
The report from Sport however states that De Jong would be open to a move to Bundesliga side Bayern, where he would be challenging for the top honours regularly whilst being close to his homeland.
In addition, the fact that the Bavarian club are closing in on a deal to bring Juventus’ Dutch centre back Matthijs de Ligt to the club is another reason why De Jong would want to move to Munich.
De Ligt and De Jong spent time together in Ajax, they played a vital role in the Amsterdam club’s run to the Champions League semi final in 2019.
However, United are unwilling to give up on signing De Jong. The club’s chief executive Richard Arnold and director of football John Murtough travelled to Barcelona last week to meet with club officials in a bid to conclude the deal.
So far this summer, United have successfully completed the transfers for defender Tyrell Malacia and midfielder Christian Eriksen. The club have also announced they have reached an agreement to bring Ajax centre back Lisandro Martinez to Old Trafford.
United have made a promising start to their pre season tour after winning their two opening games, a 4-0 win over Liverpool followed by a 4-1 victory over Melbourne Victory.
Featured Image Credit: Alamy
Topics: Champions League, Frenkie De Jong, Manchester United Transfer News & Rumours, Manchester United
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