Manchester United will go into the summer transfer window knowing that they have a lot of work to do if Erik ten Hag is to have a fair chance to succeed at Old Trafford. The Red Devils have been in decline ever since Sir Alex Ferguson retired and it has only gotten worse over the years, with the club failing to win a single trophy in the past five seasons. The squad needs a major transformation to say the least.
Manchester United might end up needing particular attention in the middle of the park. Key players like Paul Pogba and Nemanja Matic appear to be headed out of Old Trafford. On the other hand, questions have been raised about the ability of Fred and Scott McTominay to be regular starters for the club.
Thus, it would not be much of a surprise if Manchester United ended up signing a midfielder in the summer and one they have been heavily linked with in recent times is FC Barcelona’s Frenkie de Jong.
As reported by El Nacional, Barcelona rejected a €40 million offer for De Jong in January but plan to accept if a €60 million offer is made in the summer.
Manchester United will need to pay €60 million to sign Erik ten Hag target
De Jong enjoyed his breakout season under the management of Ten Hag during their time at Ajax, as the Dutch side reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League against all odds and expectations.
Barcelona did not waste any time and signed him, and back then, the feeling was that De Jong was destined to become one of the best midfielders in the world.
Things have not quite gone that way since then as his development has stalled a bit at Barcelona, who had several other rising midfielders in their squad as well. Thus, a move away from Camp Nou would make sense.