Manchester United are still falling short of Barcelona’s asking price for Frenkie de Jong despite increasing their latest offer to £56million, according to reports in Spain.
De Jong has emerged as one of United’s top transfer targets this summer, with new boss Erik ten Hag keen to bring the former Ajax midfielder to Old Trafford.
Red Devils CEO Richard Arnold recently confirmed the club’s plans to sign him in a secretly-recorded conversation with supporters in a Cheshire pub, where he insisted money is ‘not a consideration’ as they go about bolstering Ten Hag’s squad.
Though according to Spanish publication Marca, United are still yet to reach an agreement with Barca after seeing their latest £56million offer rejected.
Arnold and Co are said to have first come up short with an offer of £51million plus £17million in add-ons, before increasing their bid to £56million outright.
However, Barca are looking to recoup the £65million they paid to sign De Jong from Ajax in 2019 upfront, meaning United are still £8million short of their valuation.
The Spanish club are currently dealing with financial problems behind the scenes, meaning they are open to a sale for the right price.
United, aware of those economic constraints, have been trying to drive the price down as much as possible, but despite their woes Barca are in no hurry to sell.
It is believed offloading De Jong will not have any impact on their reported pursuit of Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski, nor their requirement to fall within Spain’s Financial Fair Play regulation of spending 70 per cent of their overall income.
As a result, they are still holding out for United to meet their £65million valuation in full before allowing them to enter discussions with the player and his
De Jong, who still has four years to run on his contract at the Nou Camp, has made 140 appearances for Barca, scoring 13 goals and winning the Copa del Rey.
He previously worked alongside Ten Hag at Ajax, where they claimed the Dutch title and came within seconds of reaching the Champions League final in 2019.
The 25-year-old is not the only player on Ten Hag’s radar, nevertheless, as reports suggest United are also closing in on the signing of current Ajax winger Antony.
