Man City 'consider £90m De Jong transfer' that would blow rivals Man Utd away
Manchester City are interested in signing Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong - a former transfer target for local rivals Manchester United.
The Red Devils spent much of last summer trying to sign De Jong, 26, as he played under Erik ten Hag at Ajax. The Netherlands international didn't want to leave the Camp Nou, forcing United to swoop for Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro late in the window.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta recently confirmed that an unnamed club - likely to be United - submitted a €100million (£86m) bid for De Jong a year ago, but that wasn't enough. Now City boss Pep Guardiola is after his signature and is willing to pay £90m.
Guardiola wants a new central midfielder after Treble-winning captain Ilkay Gundogan joined Barcelona on a free transfer. Mateo Kovacic has arrived from Chelsea, but that didn't stop City from making an unsuccessful £90m bid for West Ham skipper Declan Rice.
The Hammers turned down that offer, with Rice now set to join Arsenal in a £105m deal. As reported by The Sun, that has forced Guardiola to look elsewhere - with De Jong on his transfer shortlist after four impressive seasons in Spain.
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De Jong has played 183 games for Barcelona and is one of Xavi's key players at the Camp Nou - winning the La Liga title and Spanish Super Cup last term. The former Eredivisie Player of the Season has also won the Spanish Cup with Barcelona.
Erik ten Hag and Pep Guardiola are both fans of De Jong (Manchester City FC via Getty Images)Do you think Manchester City should sign Frenkie de Jong? Let us know in the comments below!
Xavi discussed De Jong's future in February. He said: "I am very happy and satisfied with his performance and leadership. He is in a great moment, like the whole team. I think he is having a good time on the field, which is the most important thing."
De Jong still has three years left on his contract, but it's claimed Barcelona wouldn't mind getting his hefty salary off their books. It would be a kick in the teeth for Ten Hag if De Jong joined City after last year's failed transfer pursuit.
Laporta confirmed that huge £86m bid for De Jong in a recent interview with TV3. The Barcelona president said: "Last year it happened and we were worse. We had an offer of €100m for De Jong and we were right not to accept it.
"We've received offers for Pedri, Ansu Fati, [Andreas] Christensen, De Jong and [Ronald] Araujo but we think they have to continue. They are the present and the future of the club."
De Jong also reiterated his desire to stay at Barcelona in a recent interview with Dutch outlet Voetbal International. He said: "That [staying] has been clear to me, also last summer when things were restless for a while. I always knew that I wanted to stay at Barcelona. That's why it wasn't so stressful for me last summer."
De Jong added: "Also, I had just signed a contract extension [in 2020] so I always felt that I was in control and able to decide for myself. That's why I didn't bother [worrying]. I feel good at Barcelona and assume that I will still be playing here next season."
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