Manchester United’s pursuit of Frenkie de Jong has not been smooth sailing, to say the least, and it is a deal that nobody knows how it will end at present.
The Dutchman has been Man United’s main target this summer and the Red Devils have already agreed a deal with Barcelona to sign the midfielder for €75m guaranteed with an additional €10m in add-ons reports The Athletic.
The main problem for Man United is trying to agree personal terms with De Jong as it has been widely reported that the 25-year-old does not want to leave Spain this summer and therefore, the Manchester club will need to have alternatives lined up in case the Dutch international can not be convinced to move to Old Trafford this summer.
One alternative that has been linked to Man United is Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves. The Portugal international has been a long-term target for the Red Devils and earlier in the week, it was reported by the Express, that Neves and Leicester City’s Youri Tielemans were players on United’s radar.
United probed signing the Portugal star last year, only for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to end up prioritising the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo instead. Even if Solskjaer was not overly keen, Bruno Fernandes was one man that was desperate for the Wolves man to join the club states the Express.
Last year, journalist Dean Jones told The Football Terrace that Fernandes would be in favour of his compatriot joining – and that the club were aware of that. The journalist stated via the Express: “Bruno Fernandes is obviously very keen for Neves to join and the club are aware of that.”
Whether this is an option for Man United now, isn’t 100% known, but the club have not given up on De Jong; who will be their main concern over the next few days.