Man Utd are 'losing patience with De Jong'
Ben Jacobs
- Updated: 20 Jul 2022 12:45 BST
- 4 min read
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Manchester United are losing patience over the Frenkie de Jong transfer saga with Barcelona, CBS reporter Ben Jacobs writes for FootballTransfers, outlining both the position of the deal currently and how it might wind up.
It’s a saga similar to Cristiano Ronaldo’s in the sense that it’s dragging on. What Barcelona are saying publicly and doing privately are very different. They need that finance, along with the activation of the second lever, to bring in players, including potentially Jules Kounde and Cesar Azpilicueta.
De Jong wants to stay. He’s contracted, which is the main point of difference to the Ousmane Dembele saga and, therefore, he doesn’t need to do anything. He could stay, even if it created acrimony, and take his current wage. Barcelona are trying to reduce their mass salary down to around €400m and a De Jong pay cut could help with that – as can selling him to Manchester United.
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Man Utd losing confidence
I don’t think Manchester United are as confident as they have been in the past. They’ve worked long and hard to get an all-in deal of around €85m and because of that, coupled with the fact that Barca president Joan Laporta has offered De Jong to other clubs like Chelsea and the fact that the talks have been so meticulous, would intimate that Barcelona are keeping their options open to sell De Jong.
That can give Manchester United some hope, but on the other side, De Jong has been flown out on the pre-season tour with Barcelona and is a player that Xavi really likes and does not see as surplus to requirements.
How this saga ends
I think the way this is going to end is, one: Man Utd are going to have to put a hard deadline on the situation and two: Barcelona are going to have to be explicit with De Jong about whether he is, or is not, surplus to requirements. At the moment, Barcelona, regardless of what they may be doing with regards lining up clubs and giving themselves options, are pretty keen on keeping him.
Manchester United are being used as a pawn a little bit because Barcelona are in the strongest possible position. If they say to the De Jong camp that you either leave for Man Utd or you take a pay cut and stay, it’s win-win for Barcelona. They either get in much-needed funds or alternatively they finally get the player to take a pay cut.
From De Jong’s point of view, he doesn’t want to take a pay cut. He’s owed a ton of the wages, so it’s become a very politicised situation and what we’re hearing in public is very different to how both the player and the club are acting in public.
Out of Man Utd’s control
Manchester United are losing patience. It doesn’t look like De Jong is so intent on a move that it will happen in a matter of hours or days, and that gives Barcelona all the control and power. The longer it drags on, the more frustrated Manchester United and De Jong will be, and then the more likely that Barcelona are going to be able to cut the player’s wages and keep him, which is their ideal preference.
Or they’re going to be able to drag this on throughout the window with a hypothetical lump sum of money that will allow them to pursue other targets. If they get those players, that might define Barca’s position in terms of pushing De Jong out.
It's not about Man Utd anymore and what they can do; it’s about one: will De Jong take a pay cut? And two: are Barcelona prepared – if he doesn’t – to tell the player that he must leave. That might change the player’s perception and appeal of Manchester United.
It’s a situation that, ironically given how hard they’ve worked, that is outside Manchester United’s control. They need help from either Barcelona pushing De Jong out, or alternatively, clarity from the player saying that he definitely won’t leave, and then United move on to other targets.
