Manchester United involved in 'poker' game with Barcelona for Frenkie De Jong - Report
Frenkie De Jong is close to signing for Manchester United from Barcelona.
Erik Ten Hag's arrival at Manchester United as their new manager has brought in a sense of optimism at the club following a horrendous campaign last season. United failed to secure a spot in the Champions League for the upcoming season after failing to grab a spot in the top four in what was a disappointing campaign for the Red Devils. United are now looking to strengthen theirsquad ahead of the new season and midfield remains one of the areas of concern for the club.
United had sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as their manager midway through their campaign last season before appointing Ralf Rangnick in an interim role. However, the German failed to change their fortunes as United ended up missing out on a spot in the top four to finish a lowly sixth.
However, United are determined to move on from the horrors of the season gone by and focus on bringing in reinforcements ahead of the new season. Netherlands midfielder Frenkie de Jong has emerged as United's first-choice midfield target this summer and the club are have been involved in negotiations with FC Barcelona for a while now.
The Barcelona star was reportedly initially reluctant on a move but has now agreed to make a switch to Old Trafford from the Camp Nou. However, Barcelona and Manchester United are yet to agree on the final fee for the Dutch midfielder and remain around 10-15 million Euros apart in their valuation, as per a report in The Athletic.
Also Read:Bayern Munich agree deal to sign Liverpool star Sadio Mane - Reports
The report further claims that Manchester United are involved in a 'poker' game with FC Barcelona over the signing of De Jong, who is clearly wanted by Ten Hag. However, there remains optimism that the move will eventually happen. As per the report, well-placed sources at United believe De Jong's move to England will ultimately happen this summer.
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However, United's new boss Ten Hag has reportedly been growing frustrated with the club's inefficiency in closing out the deal as they are just a few weeks away from the start of the pre-season. Ten Hag is aware of United's budget constraints but wants De Jong to be part of the pre-season in order to execute his plans ahead of the new season.
Also Read:Robert Lewandowski to Frenkie De Jong: 5 biggest football transfers that can happen this summer
Apart from De Jong, United have been linked with a number of other midfielders, including Denmark's Christian Eriksen, who is a free agent at present. United are also looking to strengthen their defence and attack after letting go of a number of players this summer in the form of the likes of Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic, Jesse Lingard and Juan Mata among others.