Barcelona has asked Frenkie de Jong to pay ‘nearly half of his salary while Manchester United awaits a definitive decision.
Barcelona manager Xavi has warned Frenkie de Jong that if he wants to stay at the club, he must be willing to pay ‘nearly half of his present salary.
Manchester United has reached an agreement with the Netherlands international, whom Erik ten Hag has identified as his top summer transfer priority.
A sum of £63 million has been agreed, with a further potential of £8.47 million in add-ons, with Barcelona apparently informing de Jong that they need to sell him in order to relieve some of the club’s financial pressures.
The matter is further exacerbated by the fact that the midfielder owes €17 million in deferred salary.
Barcelona has publicly said that they do not want to transfer de Jong, with club president Joan Laporta declaring on Sunday that they had ‘turned down bids’ for the former Ajax star.
Laporta stated that more conversations with de Jong were planned, with AS adding that Xavi met with the player again to explore his options.
Xavi is believed to have started the “hard fact” that if he wants to stay with the Barcelona project, he must cut his present wage “by about half.”
Xavi also told de Jong at the discussion that he aims to give him lots of game time in places other than his customary midfield role, having been used at center-half in Barcelona’s last two friendly games.
According to the article, both Xavi and de Jong left the meeting satisfied,’ implying that de Jong is willing to make a significant financial sacrifice to assure his future at Camp Nou.
According to the article, de Jong will now have the ultimate word on his future.
United have been linked with a transfer for De Jong all summer, with ten Hag desperate to get him to Old Trafford after signing Christian Eriksen, Tyrell Malacia, and Lisandro Martinez.
Chelsea has also indicated an interest in signing De Jong as Thomas Tuchel seeks to improve on last season’s third-place finish in the Premier League.
Youri Tielemans of Leicester City is apparently one other option for United if de Jong cannot be lured to Manchester.
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