Man Utd ‘raise offer’ to £77m for Barcelona star as Ten Hag ‘fetish’ is ‘no longer untouchable’
Man Utd have upped the amount they are willing to pay for Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong ahead of the summer, according to reports.
The Red Devils have been linked with the Netherlands international on numerous occasions before with reports rife during the first summer of Erik ten Hag’s reign as manager.
More ‘lies’ about Frenkie de Jong?
It is understood that Man Utd were keen on De Jong but the Dutchman never had any intention of leaving Barcelona despite reported attempts from the Catalan giants to offload his salary.
There has been speculation in every window since and De Jong recently came out to hit out at the “lies” in the media over the reporting of his contract and future.
“My future? The truth is that I’m a bit p*ssed off with what you people [journalists] write in general! A lot of things are coming out that are not true, it’s irritating me,” De Jong told reporters in February.
De Jong added: “What you say about my salary is very far from reality. Figures have been invented that are not true. I am very happy at Barça and I hope to continue playing here for many years.
“Everything that is said in the media about my salary and my future are lies. It’s a lot of smoke.
“I know that a lot of things are made up in the media, you write things that are not true. You are doing it in general with a lot of players, coaches even. You can’t do that, you are making things up. Stop this.
“I consider the club to be my teammates, the staff, I’m enjoying it a lot… The media sometimes criticise my level, it doesn’t matter because everyone can have their own opinion. But I don’t accept lies. Don’t lie.”
Man Utd increase offer for Frenkie de Jong
And now Spanish publication Nacional insists Man Utd are still interested in De Jong and have ‘raised their offer’ to €90m (£77m), although the report doesn’t say the value of their previous offer.
It is understood that Barcelona president Joan Laporta ‘has an offer of 90 million from Manchester United on the table’ and that De Jong ‘is no longer untouchable’.
Man Utd boss Ten Hag ‘wants to reunite with one of his fetish footballers’ after managing De Jong in a successful spell at Dutch giants Ajax.
Barcelona would be ‘getting rid of one of the highest salaries in the entire locker room’ with De Jong – who is also linked with Bayern Munich in the report – ‘cited on several occasions as the one chosen to leave Barça and clean up the accounts’.
