Manchester United may reportedly have been dealt a huge blow regarding their pursuit of Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong, with the Dutchman more open to the idea of joining Chelsea or Bayern Munich.
The 25-year-old has been linked heavily with Man Utd for much of this summer, with the Red Devils yet to reach any kind of a breakthrough with the player.
According to Sport, it seems De Jong remains unconvinced by the prospect of a move to Old Trafford, but he’s open to the prospect of joining Chelsea or Bayern.
Fabrizio Romano has further details about the Blues’ interest in the former Ajax man in his exclusive CaughtOffside Substack column, and he stresses that they’ve not yet made a formal approach.
For the time being, United have agreed a deal with Barca for De Jong, according to Romano, but the player’s reluctance to move is holding things up. This could end up being a huge blow for Erik ten Hag, who would understandably relish the opportunity to work with his former player again.
It could be that this will present an opportunity to Chelsea, who might view De Jong as an ideal upgrade on Jorginho in the middle of the park.
The Italy international has just a year left on his CFC contract and may be more suited to a return to Serie A after a slightly mixed spell in the Premier League.