Manchester United hopes of signing midfielder Frenkie de Jong this summer have been dealt a blow as he has travelled with Barcelona on their pre-season tour of the United States.
United CEO Richard Arnold and football director John Murtough left Barcelona on Wednesday after several days of trying to clinch a deal to sign the Dutch star. The Untied transfer chiefs had jetted to the Catalan capital on Monday and despite reaching an agreement with the club, did not conclude the signing.
United already had an initial transfer fee agreed with Barcelona for the value of £56.2million with reports that last week the clubs agreed an overall package in the region of £72million. Yet no deal was formalised as De Jong has not yet agreed terms for a move, although United will not give up on a deal and will continue to push for the player for the remainder of the window.
New United boss Erik ten Hag held a phone call to convince the player that he should join his project at Old Trafford – after the two had shared such a strong working relationship during their time together at Ajax – and the club will continue to pursue a move with De Jong remaining the number one target of Ten Hag.
It has been outlined that Ten Hag remains in dialogue with the midfield maestro and United insist that the hold-up in the move is due to the player's £17million in deferred wages from Barca, which has created an impasse. The English club believe that Barca are as keen for a deal as they are, due to the amounts owed to the player being beyond their wage structure and their necessity to sell.
United this week concluded the free transfer of Christian Eriksen – who became the club’s second signing of the summer transfer window after full-back Tyrell Malacia from Feyenoord, with a deal for Ajax defender Lisandro Martinez close – but De Jong remains their key objective this summer.
Yet the central midfielder has jetted off with Barcelona to their pre-season tour of the United States, which is due to last 17 days. That reduces the likelihood of a deal being agreed anytime soon and is the latest indicator that he may yet stay with the Blaugrana for the coming season – with him and his teammates not expected to return to Europe until August.
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De Jong is one of the highest earners at Barcelona and he is also owed a series of payments that through amortizations and other clauses that are part of his deal. The problem for the club is that they are currently unable to process such payments, complicating the player's future.
It remains unclear if the player's move is being held up over these payments or if he does not intend to complete a transfer to United. However, the English club is confident their patience over negotiations would pay off as Barca privately have been open to his departure despite their stance of insisting he is not for sale.
The Catalan giants have completed deals to sign Andreas Christensen, Franck Kessie, Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski, but they will not be able to register them for matches this season until they drastically reduce their wage bill with multiple players set to leave. However, De Jong is the highest earner who is attracting interest from other clubs and that is why Barca have been open to negotiating his exit.
Barca’s tour of the US will start on 20 July against Inter Miami in Florida before facing Real Madrid in Las Vegas four days later and then taking on Juventus in Dallas on 26 July. They will conclude their tour of the US with a clash against New York Red Bulls on 31 July.
Barcelona's 28-man squad for their pre-season trip to the United States : Ter Stegen, Dest, Pique, Araujo, Busquets, Dembele, Pedri, Memphis, Ansu Fati, Nico, Jordi Alba, Ferran Torres, Sergi Roberto, Frenkie de Jong, Eric Garcia, Aubameyang, Gavi, Inaki Pena, Pjanic, Collado, Kessie, Christensen, Raphinha, Arnau Tenas, Pablo Torre, Balde, Abde, Casado.
