Premier League heavyweights Chelsea have reportedly submitted an enquiry to Barcelona for Frenkie de Jong, a target for Manchester United.
According to a report by Spanish publication SPORT, Chelsea submitted an enquiry to Barcelona for Frenkie de Jong in the recent extensive discussions between the two clubs. Barcelona will demand €80 million for the Dutch midfielder, but the Blues are ready to offer €60 million-plus-Cesar Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso for the Manchester United target.
Frenkie de Jong finds himself at a crossroads in his career due to Barcelona’s poor financial decisions. While the 25-year-old has been one of the better performers for Barcelona since arriving from Ajax in July 2019, he will likely depart from Camp Nou this summer, despite recent comments by Joan Laporta.
The Dutch midfielder has featured nearly 150 times for Barcelona, chipping in with 12 goals and 17 assists. But with Barcelona open to selling de Jong despite contradicting claims in public, several high-profile clubs across Europe have set their sights on him, including Chelsea and Manchester United.
The interest from Chelsea comes in the wake of an eye-opening season for Thomas Tuchel, which had N’Golo Kante starting less than half of the games the Blues played. In addition, Kante and Jorginho are in the final year of their respective contracts, with the duo on the wrong side of 30.
Frenkie de Jong has thus emerged as a viable target for Chelsea, with the west Londoners submitting an enquiry to Barcelona for the Dutchman. But they will need to fend off competition from Manchester United to secure the services of the Barcelona midfielder in the summer transfer window.
At Manchester United, de Jong could be a long-term replacement for Paul Pogba, who will soon rejoin Juventus in a Bosman move. But the 25-year-old has been reluctant to leave Barcelona to move to Manchester United, thus putting a spanner in the works for the Red Devils.
In addition, Chelsea’s emergence in the race to sign de Jong has further complicated matters for Manchester United. The Blues are ready to offer €60 million-plus-Cesar Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso to tempt Barcelona to sell de Jong, with the Blaugrana demanding €80 million for him.
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It will be interesting to see if Barcelona will be tempted by Chelsea’s impending offer for de Jong, who will be open to joining the Blues. But Manchester United will not throw in the towel just yet, although Chelsea could steamroll them in the race to sign the Dutchman.