When Erik ten Hag arrived at Old Trafford in 2022, he made it his personal goal to get back together with De Jong, whose rise to fame he oversaw while at Ajax.
The Eredivisie giants made it to the semi-finals of the 2018–19 Champions League thanks to De Jong's work, which led to a big move to Camp Nou for the midfielder.
United pushed hard for weeks to get the 27-year-old player to Old Trafford. They were thought to have reached a deal with Barcelona at one point, but De Jong turned down the offer.
Instead, Ten Hag brought in Casemiro and Christian Eriksen. However, both experienced midfielders have been highly linked with departures after a drop in performance levels last season.
Barcelona wants £72.8 million for Frenkie de Jong.
Ever since that mess in 2022, the Red Devils are thought to have had their eye on De Jong. He has often said he doesn't want to leave Barcelona, but his deal ends in two years.
The former Ajax player is expected to play a significant role under new manager Hansi Flick, but it's still unclear if De Jong will be given a new contract. If not, the club could try to sell him this summer for a significant profit.
Nacional, a Spanish news source, says that Man United and Sir Jim Ratcliffe are again interested in De Jong. They have sent an opening bid of €50m (£42.8m) to the Barcelona offices.
President Joan Laporta thought that the offer needed to be higher. He is willing to sell De Jong for the right price but wants a deal worth €85m (£72.8m) to eliminate the Dutchman.
It is said that Ten Hag is "totally obsessed" with getting the 27-year-old player and that Man United would have to pay a set fee of €70m (£59.9m) plus another €15m (£12.8m) in performance-related add-ons to sign him.
Since joining Barcelona for €86 million (£73.6 million), the former Ajax player has scored 17 goals and set up 21 others in 213 games across all tournaments. He has also helped the team win one La Liga title, one Supercopa de España, and one Copa del Rey.
Man United probably will only give in to Laporta's price demands if they make a couple of big sales in the next few weeks. However, they could get three former Ajax players back by paying a lot for De Jong.
The Red Devils are almost done signing Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui, two defensive players from Bayern Munich. Ten Hag also worked with these players in Amsterdam during his incredible time there.
De Ligt and Mazraoui were seen leaving an airport in Munich for a flight to Manchester to get their medicals and sign their contracts. They are following Leny Yoro and Joshua Zirkzee to Old Trafford.
Yoro has hurt his foot and will be out for at least three months. De Ligt will fill in for him temporarily, and Mazraoui is being signed to replace Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who is going to West Ham United.
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