The partner of Frenkie de Jong, Mikky Kiemeney, has joked about the date Frenkie de Jong will ‘arrive’ at Manchester United.
The Barcelona midfielder was Erik ten Hag’s top summer target last year but a long chase for the playmaker was ultimately made in vain as the player stayed at the Nou Camp. The Manchester Evening News understands United are still open to bringing the 25-year-old to Old Trafford.
De Jong is set to face the Reds this month when they battle Barcelona in their Europa League knock-out play-off tie. United visit the Nou Camp first on February 16 before the return leg on home soil a week later.
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On Monday, Kiemeney hosted a question-and-answer session on Instagram with her followers. One follower, presumably a United fan, asked: “When’s Frenkie coming to Manchester?”
She replied with a screenshot of United’s list of fixtures which included United’s home tie against Barcelona on February 23. So she comically replied: “23-2 I guess.”
United are expected to plunge for a marquee striker in the summer with the club open to allowing injury-troubled Anthony Martial to leave. However, Ten Hag is also thought to be keen on signing another midfielder to bolster the depth of their ranks.
De Jong’s contract at Barcelona lasts until 2026. The La Liga leaders are still in mounds of debt, though, and could be forced to sell off key players to balance the books.
The club managed to offset a number of assets to work within La Liga’s finance rules last summer, with Spotify being granted naming rights to the Nou Camp and becoming shirt sponsor in one act.
However, this is unlikely to happen again this year with a limited amount of assets still in their name. De Jong has a standoff with Barcelona over a wage dispute regarding deferred payments.
The club refused to hand over the amount owed that the player pledged to put off amid the pandemic, and so this was partly why De Jong was reluctant on a United move and thus leave without his due reimbursement.
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