Hansi Flick pushing for Barcelona to take transfer U-turn on midfielder

Few players have divided opinion in Barcelona as much as Frenkie de Jong. The Dutch midfielder arrived as a young midfielder off the back of a thrilling run with Ajax to the tune of €86m as the next dominant figure in their midfield for much of the next decade. However as he approaches his second contract with the Blaugrana, his legacy remains unclear.

After several years of being an undisputed starter without necessarily dominating the middle of the pitch, Barcelona began touting him for a summer sale three years ago, and tried again at various points thereafter. With a contract offer from Barcelona going unanswered in 2024, the club then withdrew the offer.

Simultaneously, de Jong was struggling with an ankle issue that kept him out for five months, and when he came back, Marc Casado had usurped him. The attitude at Can Barca was that patience had run thin with de Jong, and he was a high earner who did not even that out with his contributions. With his deal up in 2026, and no sign of talks despite Gavi, Pedri and Ronald Araujo, de Jong had begun to look like a probable sale in the summer.

However Sport say that manager Hansi Flick is urging Barcelona to sign de Jong to a new contract. The Dutch midfielder is now keen to stay after some doubts in 2024, and Flick believes he has a series of qualities that suit him and his style. The 27-year-old was one of the few requests Flick made to the club when he arrived, that they hang onto him.

Naturally salary will be the key point of discussion, and as one of the two highest earners at Barcelona this season, he will likely have to take a cut if he does want to stay. However with de Jong starting to string performances together, the situation looks much different than two months ago. Liverpool and Saudi Arabia have also been credited with interest in de Jong.

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