Report reveals how Ten Hag will land major Man Utd transfer after ‘irresistible charm offensive’
Man Utd boss Erik ten Hag has convinced Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong to join the Premier League club this summer, according to reports.
De Jong, who has 43 international caps for the Netherlands, joined Barcelona in 2019 in a deal worth an initial €75m from Dutch side Ajax.
The 25-year-old has gone on to score 13 times in 140 appearances for the Catalan giants but he hasn’t quite lived up to the expectations that come with his huge price tag.
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And it now looks like he could leave the Camp Nou this summer to join up with former boss Ten Hag, who was De Jong’s manager as Ajax reached the Champions League semi-finals in 2019.
Man Utd have made De Jong their main midfield target this summer but there were reports last month that he was unsure about a move to Old Trafford with the Premier League club failing to qualify for the Champions League.
But now the Daily Mirror insists that De Jong ‘has been convinced that his future lies’ at Man Utd after Ten Hag ‘launched an irresistible charm offensive on the Dutch midfielder’.
Ten Hag has passed his first ‘challenge’ as Man Utd boss ‘with flying colours’ with De Jong initially wanting to stay in Spain with Barcelona.
The Red Devils have reportedly had a bid of around £60m rejected by the La Liga side with sources in the Netherlands telling the Daily Mirror that Barcelona are looking for £68m plus some add-ons.
Ten Hag has ‘explained to De Jong how he is planning to bring the glory years back to Old Trafford’ and ‘reminded him how together they won a Dutch league and cup double with Ajax in 2019’.
The new permanent Man Utd boss has also promised to ‘build a team around’ De Jong with previous reports commenting that he planned to make him the ‘cornerstone’ of his side.
Former Netherlands coach Bert van Marwijk recently commented on getting the best out of De Jong, he said: “If Frenkie plays in the role he should be playing then he won’t be the best midfielder in Europe – he will be the best in the world.”
