Chelsea and Manchester United may reportedly have been given a boost in their rumoured pursuit of Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong.
The Netherlands international looked like an outstanding prospect during his time at previous club Ajax, but it hasn’t quite worked out for him at Barcelona, leading to plenty of transfer gossip involving his future recently.
According to the latest from Spanish outlet Todo Fichajes, De Jong has been cleared to leave, with the player’s agent instructed to look for a new club for his client, who is valued at around €70million.
This could mean we get the chance to see De Jong in the Premier League in the near future, with the 24-year-old recently linked with both Chelsea and Man Utd.
El Nacional claimed Chelsea were ready to pay around €40m for De Jong, which probably won’t be enough, while another report from El Nacional claimed United could be ready to offer more like €55m, though that also wouldn’t be enough.
De Jong could do a job for both these clubs, but it remains to be seen if it would really be worth paying such big money for a player who hasn’t been at his best for some time.
Even if the Dutchman would be a tempting option if he’s made available, both CFC and MUFC may justifiably feel there are better options out there.
Chelsea already have N’Golo Kante, Jorginho and Mateo Kovacic in central midfield, so it’s not even immediately obvious that they need to rush out and strengthen in that position.
United, meanwhile, could probably do with making changes in that department after inconsistent performances from the likes of Nemanja Matic and Fred, while Donny van de Beek has struggled for playing time at Old Trafford.