Chelsea are indeed interested in signing Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong and are thinking about hijacking Manchester United’s move for him, reports Fabrizio Romano, although this hinges on one condition. The Dutchman, whom fans have described as a “monster”, has been involved in a two-month-long transfer saga with the Red Devils, but is yet to make a decision on his future.
Chelsea Interested in Hijacking Manchester United’s Move for Frenkie de Jong
Thomas Tuchel’s Side Only Willing to Submit Bid for de Jong on One Condition
With the London giants interested in signing the Dutch midfielder to strengthen for the future, they are cautiously optimistic about a deal.
Read More: Chelsea Owners Ready to Offload Players With Big Contracts
Indeed, Chelsea will only submit an offer to sign De Jong when they confirm that the midfielder is actually willing to leave the La Liga side and join them. They do not want to be left in an embarrassing situation like United, who have been chasing him for months but have not been able to close a deal yet.
Stiff Competition From United
Despite their interest in signing the 24-year-old midfielder, the Blues are still well behind the Red Devils in their pursuit of him. United have laid a lot of groundwork for De Jong, who remains a priority target for new manager Erik ten Hag and one the gaffer wants desperately to reunite with at Old Trafford.
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United have even reportedly agreed on a fee of around £72.5 million with Barcelona for the signing of the Dutch midfielder. However, they are currently unable to finalize the transfer because De Jong himself doesn’t want to join them or leave Barcelona at the moment.
Official. Frenkie de Jong is included in the squad of Barcelona's pre-season tour in US. 🚨🛩🇳🇱 #FCB
Still no changes: no agreement on player side with Manchester United, no intention to leave as things stand. The clubs have agreed €75m fee plus €10m in add-ons. pic.twitter.com/1lnDwwDuVV
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 16, 2022
De Jong Resisting Barcelona Exit Because of Wage Dispute
Despite all the transfer rumours around him, De Jong himself is unwilling to secure an exit from Camp Nou this summer. This is because he considers Barcelona his dream club and does not want to end his tenure with the Spanish giants so early.
An even more prevalent reason is that he is owed a lot of money from the club due to agreeing on a pay cut during the Covid-19 pandemic. He is owed £14.5 million in deferred wages which Barcelona are unwilling to pay him immediately and that is holding up any potential exit.
Read More: Every Premier League Transfer Completed in Summer 2022
Chelsea are monitoring the situation closely and will only make a move for the midfielder once his wage dispute is sorted. For now, De Jong is with the Spanish side in their pre-season tour of the USA and seems primed to begin the new campaign with them.
