Manchester United are prepared to make midfielder Frenkie de Jong their highest paid player in order to lure him from Barcelona, The Daily Star reports.
The Red Devils are expected to recruit a new defensive midfielder this summer, and it appears that De Jong is the top target for new manager Erik ten Hag.
The 25-year-old initially snubbed interest from the Red Devils as they failed to make the Champions League, but their refusal to accept ‘no’ has impressed him.
With no concrete offers from other big-hitters in Europe, United are now prepared to make De Jong their highest paid player (£395,000-a-week) to convince him.
David de Gea is currently deemed to be highest earner at United at £375,000-a-week followed by the likes of Jadon Sancho, Raphael Varane and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Our view:
De Jong played as a genuine holding midfielder at Ajax under Ten Hag. However, he has operated in a more central role since his move to the Catalan giants.
A reunion with Ten Hag could be ideal for him in the prime of his career. He will get to play in his preferred position for United and would be an undisputed starter.
De Jong would provide a much-needed upgrade for the club with his superb distribution. He completed over 91 per cent of his passes during the previous league campaign.
He averaged just one tackle per game last term, but his statistics were much superior when he played in the defensive midfield role for Ajax during the 2018/19 season.
During Ajax’s run to the Champions League semi-final, De Jong averaged an impressive 2.5 tackles and 1.7 interceptions per game, coming up against some of Europe’s best.
Hence, he is also solid with his defensive contributions. If United can convince him, they could prise him away for £75 million or even less with Barcelona’s financial issues.
