Rijo Sam Daniel
Barcelona boss Xavi Hernandez sends Frenkie de Jong message amid Manchester United transfer links
Barcelona boss Xavi Hernandez has given his thoughts on the future of Frenkie de Jong amid links to Manchester United for a potential transfer. The midfielder has been surrounded by uncertainty over the past few weeks, with Erik ten Hag being in line to move to Old Trafford at the end of this season.
De Jong has been linked with an exit from Barca despite being one of their crucial stars in their current project. Man United have been touted as a potential destination as he could reunite with his former manager, Ten Hag, after enjoying a successful spell during their time together at Ajax.
Now, Xavi has expressed his viewpoint on the matter in the pre-match presser ahead of the Villarreal clash, as relayed by Fabrizio Romano on Twitter. The Spanish coach has conveyed that he wants the Dutch star to be a part of his project but has left the door open for a departure due to the Blaugrana side’s financially stricken situation.
“For me, Frenkie is a great player, he’s a beast – I like him and I think he can be part of an important era of the club. We will see the economic situation of the club… but I like de Jong.”
De Jong to Man Utd on the cards?
The Mancunians would be delighted to hear the Catalans boss’ latest words as he has not given a firm indication that the 25-year-old midfielder would stay with them moving forward. That could hint at the fact that they may just be open to selling De Jong to balance their dire finances.
The Red Devils must contact the La Liga giants and get a clear idea regarding their stance on De Jong’s potential sale. Once that is done, we can prepare our transfer plans depending on the answer that we would receive from Barcelona.
The main concern would probably be the Barca midfielder’s stance on joining the Manchester side in the future. After all, we are not in a good situation on sporting terms, especially after missing out on Champions League football for the next campaign.
More Manchester United News
- Eddie Howe insists Newcastle still not close to signing anybody amid Dean Henderson transfer links
- Manchester United academy talents could make it to the first team next season, according to Ralf Rangnick
- Transfer News: Manchester United ‘tracking’ Eintracht Frankfurt defender Evan Ndicka
Then again, the fans are hoping that Ten Hag can convince De Jong to make the switch to team up with him at Carrington. There is a clear need to bring in top quality midfielders this summer as we would only have Fred, Scott McTominay, Bruno Fernandes and Donny van de Beek as our first team options as of now.
De Jong could perfectly slot into our usual 4-2-3-1 system with one of Fred or McTominay being alongside him in the midfield. The former rose to make a name for himself alongside Lasse Schone at Amsterdam in a similar formation, so there is no reason to think that he would not replicate the same under Ten Hag.
But for that to happen, the Dutch international would need to agree to join us in the summer transfer window. Whether that will happen or not, though, remains to be seen.
