Transfer Talk: Man Utd, Barcelona discuss De Jong despite desire for Camp Nou stay
Frenkie De Jong tells ESPN about his desire to stick with Barcelona amid interest from Manchester United. (1:20)
The summer transfer window is approaching, and there’s plenty of gossip swirling about who’s moving where. Transfer Talk brings you all the latest buzz on rumours, comings and goings and, of course, done deals!
Manchester United have held talks with Barcelona over midfielder Frenkie de Jong, according to Sky Sports.
While a deal is not close for the Dutchman, he is on a list of midfielders that United are looking at bringing in to help strengthen new manager Erik ten Hag’s squad.
The report comes after Wednesday’s announcement that Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard will be leaving Old Trafford. Nonetheless, there would be significant obstacles to overcome if De Jong’s transfer was to materialise, notably a fee and the will of the player.
Speaking to ESPN Netherlands’ Pascal Kamperman on Tuesday, De Jong said he hoped to stay at Camp Nou, calling Barcelona his “dream club.”
“I’ve never regretted my choice despite the fact that I had hoped for more in terms of prizes than I’ve achieved so far,” de Jong said. “But I have never regretted my choice.
“What I’m saying, there is absolutely nothing of an agreement or anything official … At the moment there is no question of it at all. Not that I know of in any case. Or they must not have told me, but I don’t think so.”
De Jong is a player that Ten Hag rates highly after they worked together at Ajax Amsterdam, winning the 2018-19 Eredivisie title as well as reaching the Champions League semifinal.
– Stream ESPN FC Daily on ESPN+ (U.S. only)
– Don’t have ESPN? Get instant access
– Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah wants to stay in the Premier League if he leaves Anfield as a free agent in the summer of 2023, reports The Athletic. There is one year left on the Egyptian’s contract, and as of yet his representatives and the club have been unable to reach an agreement on a renewal. He is committed to staying with Liverpool for the 2022-23 season, but will leave when his contract ends unless he receives a significantly improved offer.
– Real Madrid could be priced out of a move for Aurelien Tchouameni with Paris Saint-Germain willing to offer AS Monaco €100 million for the midfielder, according to Marca. Tchouameni wants to leave Ligue 1 and join Los Blancos but with PSG offering such a large fee, Monaco are unwilling to accept anything below that. Madrid are keen to sign the midfielder but feel such a large fee could impact the club’s stability.
– Newcastle United have reached an agreement with Stade de Reims to sign 19-year-old Hugo Ekitike for €36m with €10m in easily attainable bonuses, reports Foot Mercato. There are still small details to be agreed, but it is expected that the striker will soon be packing his bags to move to the Premier League after an impressive breakthrough campaign in Ligue 1.
– With Henrikh Mkhitaryan‘s contract expiring at the end of June, AS Roma are trying to keep the Armenian but face competition from Internazionale, according to Sky Sports Italia. Roma have offered him €3.5m-per-year with bonuses that could take his earnings up to a potential €4.1m, while Inter have offered a two-year contract worth €4.5m-per-year. They can also give the former Manchester United man the chance to play Champions League football.
– Amid Mkhitaryan’s contract saga, Roma are looking for players who can play in the wide attacking areas and have settled on Bodo/Glimt’s Ola Solbakken, Valencia‘s Goncalo Guedes and Colon‘s Facundo Farias, as reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport. While this doesn’t mean all three will be joining Jose Mourinho’s squad, it is expected that either one or two of them will.