Aheed Abrar
Chelsea close to agreeing £67.6 million deal for Manchester United target Frenkie de Jong
Chelsea are closing in on an agreement with Barcelona as the Blues are prepared to shell out £67.6 million for Manchester United target Frenkie de Jong, according to Sport (h/t Metro).
The Stamford Bridge side have been in talks with the Catalan giants. Chelsea have been given a significant boost in their pursuit of the Dutch midfielder. But there’s still the issue of convincing the 25-year-old to leave the Camp Nou side.
United are one of the teams chasing De Jong’s signature. Erik ten Hag is keen on bringing the former Ajax midfielder to Old Trafford and reuniting with him.
The Manchester-based club missed out on Champions League football last season after failing to finish in the top four. On the other hand, Chelsea will be competing in Europe’s premier competition in the 2022/23 campaign.
United need to focus on De Jong alternatives
After the drawn-out saga, it’d be wise for United to focus on other targets this summer. We can’t afford to wait any longer for someone who might or might not come to the club.
The Red Devils need midfield reinforcements. While there have been incoming transfers this summer, we’ve lost a lot of players this transfer window.
Paul Pogba was one of the marquee signings for us back in 2016. United got the Frenchman from Juventus in a big-money deal. But after failing to have a considerable impact in Manchester, the 29-year-old went back to Turin this summer on a free transfer.
Other departures in the middle of the park include Jesse Lingard, Nemanja Matic and Juan Mata. Yet, the management at United has only made one midfield addition as of yet. Christian Eriksen was signed as a free agent.
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The Danish national’s signing doesn’t solve our midfield problems, though. We need a number eight and a defensive midfielder. Eriksen has played most of his career in a more attacking role.
Barcelona are willing to sell and United need a player of De Jong’s ilk. But it remains to be seen what the 25-year-old decides to do in the future.
