Barcelona and former Ajax midfielder Frenkie de Jong is willing to leave Barcelona at the end of the season, LCSoccerHub Reports.
The Netherlands international, who joined the La Liga giants in 2019 from Ajax, is said to be considering his future at the club and could be open to an exit at the end of the season.
De Jong, 29, has been a top transfer target for Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag, who worked with the player at Ajax before selling him to Barcelona in 2019.
Erik ten Hag considered Frenkie de Jong a top target, critical on the holding midfield role for his deep press style of play. After rounds of talks with Barcelona in 2022, United reached an agreement on a £73m transfer fee for the player. Barcelona wanted to offload de Jong to check their diminishing financial returns.
Despite the agreement, De Jong turned down a move to Old Trafford and chose to continue with the Catalan giants.
Now, the 54-cap Dutch midfielder is open to leaving Barcelona in what could be a grand opportunity for Manchester United to sign the player at the end of the season.
Frenkie de Jong’s decision to leave Barcelona has been linked to the club’s recent misfortunes on the domestic front. Barcelona lost the Spanish Super Cup to Real Madrid, crashed out of Copa del Rey, and have been written off the 2023/24 La Liga title race.
According to football journalist Lluis Canut, who is reportedly close to de Jong’s camp, de Jong is reportedly fixated on leaving Barcelona, and the club is equally open to allowing him to leave at the end of the season.
Speaking on ESport3’s Onze Show, Lluis Canut says;
“De Jong has not given the green light. But he is no longer closing the door on leaving Barca as he did two seasons ago
“At the moment, De Jong is a little disappointed by the situation at Barca because he has not managed to turn the expectations that had been generated at the time when he signed into important titles.
“De Jong would be willing to leave Barca at the end of this season,” Lluis Canut said.
Frenkie de Jong has two years remaining on his Barcelona contract having committed to the club till 2026. He will enter the last year of his contract after next season.
