Erik ten Hag is somewhat obsessed with bringing Frenkie de Jong to Manchester United and in a bid to do so, United have just made a swap deal offer to Barcelona.
According to reports in Spain, as quoted by Football 365, Premier League side Man United are ready to send Antony to Camp Nou in a deal which will see Frenkie de Jong to Old Trafford.
Barcelona are willing to get rid of Frenkie de Jong to try and lower their massive wage bills however, the Catalans have made it clear that they have no interest in bringing in a player like Antony. While Barca do wish to sign a new winger someone like Antony does not fit their profile. Deco and Joan Laporta are ready to cash in on FDJ before deadline day but they want an interested club to pay a considerable amount of money instead of making swap deal offers like Man United have just done.
Should Barcelona accept the swap deal offer for Frenkie de Jong?
Since taking charge of Manchester United, Ten Hag has been urging the club’s management to sign FDJ but so far, the midfielder has evaded their clutches. Last season De Jong was not ready to leave Barca but this time around, his stance has softened to a large extent.
A move to Man United will make a lot of sense for the Dutch international however, there’s no way Barcelona will agree to let go of a talent like De Jong in exchange for Antony.
United had paid almost €90 million to sign Antony from Ajax but the winger has turned out to be a major failure. In two years, the Brazilian international has played in 54 Premier League games for the Red Devils and he’s had only 8 goal contributions.
It’s an open secret that Erik ten Hag has been trying to get rid of Antony this summer but the only way Barcelona will agree to sign the winger is if he opts to be the backup to Lamine Yamal. Barca are currently looking to get rid of Raphinha which is why they are searching for a replacement who will be ready to play second fiddle.
However, we seriously doubt if Antony will want to join the Catalans and be the second-choice winger to a 17-year-old.
Also, instead of experimenting with a flop like Antony, Hansi Flick will be content with keeping hold of Raphinha.
Now, coming to Frenkie de Jong, Laporta and Deco are in desperate need of funds so if Manchester United are really serious about landing the central midfielder then they will have to table an all-cash bid of at least €80-85 million.
