Frenkie de Jong has told his story Barcelona teammates there is no chance he will leave Camp Nou for Manchester United while the Hispanic side weighs in on how to try to get him out, according to reports.
After long and protracted negotiations with Barca, the two clubs have finally agreed on a deal worth €85m (£72m) – of which £63 million is prepaid and the rest in bonuses.
But it seems easy to negotiate a fee as De Jong is totally unconvinced of a move to Old Trafford.
The Netherlands international is happy and settling in Catalonia and even asked his agent to inform United CEO Richard Arnold and football director John Murtough. give up their pursuit.
However, Barcelona are pushing hard for De Jong to leave as his sale is now deemed necessary to comply with financial fair play rules and allow them to register their new signings.
At a meeting on Thursday Barça officials spoke to the 25-year-old and outlined their stance, saying it is fundamental to the club’s finances that he accept United’s offer.
But he still doesn’t flinch, with the Spanish newspaper Sport He claimed he said to his team-mates at Barcelona: ‘It is impossible for me to leave. How am I going to leave Barca?’
While De Jong isn’t impressed with the way he’s been treated by the Barcelona hierarchy, he and his girlfriend like living in the city and don’t want to move to Manchester.
The couple only recently bought a house in the Pedralbes district and feel very settled in Catalonia, while De Jong believes that he still has enough to offer the club on the field.
His team-mates are said to be unsure how the transfer saga will unfold and whether the player or the club will come out on top.
Xavi remains a big fan of De Jong and the rest of the squad have found themselves on good terms around training camp, with the Spanish coach still showing affection for his midfielder.
But Xavi also acknowledges the financial implications of not selling De Jong, with Ousmane Dembele – who has just signed a contract extension – and new signing Raphinha cannot be registered with La Liga until they have released more money and reduced their wage bill.
As such, Barcelona are now considering the possibility of excluding De Jong from their upcoming pre-season tour of the United States in a last-ditch effort to convince him to leave the club and accept United’s offer.
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