Manchester United have agreed a fee with Barcelona for the transfer of Netherlands midfielder Frenkie de Jong, according to freelance journalist Jacque Talbot, with a deal for Lisandro Martinez also all but done.
The move for de Jong had previously been thought to have stalled between the two clubs, due to outstanding monies owed to the Dutchman by the La Liga club, amongst a multitude of other reasons.
GiveMeSport Transfer Update
What’s the latest on de Jong?
According to Fabrizio Romano, both Manchester United and Barcelona have a full agreement on a fee for de Jong, which as a package total is worth roughly £72m.
However, according to the same insider, the 44-time Netherlands international still isn’t keen on a move to Old Trafford, and the midfielder's agent has informed the Catalan giants of this fact this week.
A fee for de Jong had seemingly been agreed between the same two clubs at the end of June, but the move didn’t progress further over the coming weeks, with the Manchester club sending chief executive Richard Arnold and football director John Murtough to Barcelona to try and conclude the deal this week.
And whilst a deal could not be concluded during their trip, alongside interest from fellow Premier League club Chelsea, the deal between the two clubs now seems to at least have been wrapped up, with personal terms with the player now being the only sticking issue.
And Talbot also believes that all the transfer fees are agreed between the two clubs, and Barcelona made it so difficult because they “don’t want to be perceived as a selling club.”
What has Talbot said about de Jong?
He told GIVEMESPORT: “The fee [for de Jong] is agreed.
"It was just about the ironing out of the add-ons and stuff which seems to have been done now.
“It's just been a lot of posturing from Barcelona.
“They don't want to be perceived as a selling club.
“They still want to be perceived as a big club, but they're refusing to acknowledge, or at least allow themselves to acknowledge in public the tremendous debt that they're in, which is why there's been so much chaos around it.”
What next for de Jong?
De Jong, who has been described as "phenomenal" by former Arsenal favourite Kevin Campbell, now has a big decision to make on his future over the coming days, on whether to stop at a Barcelona side playing Champions League football but a club that is also in financial ruin, or to sign for a Europa League Manchester United but a side who could progress to become Champions League regulars in the near future.
The £101m-rated man could perhaps be swayed to make the move to Old Trafford in order to reunite with his former Ajax manager in Erik ten Hag, whilst he could also be convinced by the prospect of playing in arguably the highest quality league on the planet at the moment.
Whatever de Jong chooses, ten Hag will hope that the saga is over soon so that he can get the Dutchman prepared for life in the Premier League, or move onto other midfield targets.