Frenkie de Jong has reiterated his desire to remain at Barcelona and confirmed he would turn down a move to Manchester United this summer.
The midfielder was one of the Red Devils' top targets ahead of the current campaign, but failed to hammer out a deal with the LaLiga giants. Instead, the Dutchman stayed at the Nou Camp and has gone on to play a key role in Barca's title charge.
He made his 20th LaLiga start of the season on Sunday as Real Madrid travelled to Catalonia for the second El Clasico of the campaign. De Jong put in a midfield masterclass to help his side claim a win, thanks to Franck Kessie's injury-time goal.
After the game, De Jong once again insisted that he had no desire to leave Barca for Old Trafford. Instead, he said he is happy with life in Spain and made it clear that United had little hope of convincing him to move.
"No, I don't think so. You never know of course. But I'm very happy in Barcelona," he told Ziggo Sport when asked if he would join United in the upcoming summer transfer window.
"From the summer until now it has improved for me here. I play almost every game, it makes me feel so satisfied. I am a better player now than what I was when I signed for Barça.”
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That message comes days after De Jong expressed his desire to play at the redeveloped Nou Camp. That work is scheduled to be completed in 2025, with Barca moving to the city's Olympic Stadium while the construction is carried out.
And ahead of Sunday's El Clasico, De Jong made it clear that he wished to still be playing for the club when they returned. He described Barca as the "club of his dreams" in a further blow to United's hopes of signing him.
"Hopefully I can play in the new Camp Nou. Barcelona has always been the club of my dreams and I want to stay here for many years. For me, the Camp Nou is the most beautiful stadium in the world. The plans for the stadium are very good," he told TV3.
"Playing in a Clasico is a very difficult feeling to explain. When I was a child, I dreamed of doing it with Barca and now I can do it. It's a very important game for the fans and also for the players, a game that can decide a league."
De Jong certainly lived up to his dreams of starring in an El Clasico game, playing all 90 minutes of Sunday's clash. Barca went a goal down early on through Ronald Araujo's own-goal, before Sergi Roberto equalised on the stroke of half-time.
VAR then ruled out a Marco Asensio goal, which proved to be key when Kessie side-footed Alejandro Balde’s cross in for a late winner. De Jong was the star man for Barca, completing 94 per cent of his passes, creating five chances, winning eight defensive duels and making 10 recoveries.
