Unless someone has been living under a rock, it is well-known that Manchester United have made Frenkie de Jong their prime target but the Barcelona midfielder has so far refused to entertain the idea of moving to Manchester.
The deal is complicated because of the £17 million in deferred wages that the Catalan club owe the Dutch international. And despite Joan Laporta’s comments, the La Liga giants need to sell in order to register new players into their squad.
De Jong represents the most saleable asset and if Sport are to be believed, he has a host of clubs vying for his signature. And this is despite the fact that the Camp Nou outfit have already agreed to a deal worth £71.5 million for the player’s transfer.
The Spanish publication Sport had recently claimed that the Dutch playmaker hated the idea of moving to Manchester because he dislikes the city and believes the club is run erratically.
Bayern Munich will not sign Frenkie de Jong, so the only two possible destinations for him are Chelsea and Manchester United. And as of now, Frenkie still refuses to join United.
— @sport
— Barça Universal (@BarcaUniversal) July 22, 2022
He was enamored with the idea of moving to Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich as he felt the club represented a better chance at winning the top footballing honours and would be close to his homeland. Chelsea were also mentioned as an alternative.
However, in today’s report, the Bavarian giants have ruled themselves out of the race due to their financial situation.
Chelsea top the race
According to journalist Tobbi Altschäffl from Bild, the Bavarian entity have not spoken to Barca regarding the former Ajax star and despite considering him to be interesting player, they currently do not have the finances to opt for such an expensive deal.
Bayern have recently signed Matthijs De Ligt from Juventus, who cost them £65.6 million and they are in no position to spend a similar amount on another player.
That leaves only the two Premier League clubs in the race. And the 25-year-old is not interested in playing in the Europa League.
Erik ten Hag has made no secret of his desire to reunite with his compatriot and despite his charm offensive and United’s persistence, it seems like the London club might just be edging ahead as the season draws nearer.
The Eredivisie champion considers the Chelsea project to be an interesting one and with Thomas Tuchel at the helm, the club has the necessary quality to compete for the Champions League. The player and his partner also like London a lot.
If this comes to pass it will be bitter pill to swallow for United, who have spent over 10 weeks negotiating for the player.
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