Erik ten Hag as opened the door to a fresh bid for Frenkie de Jong as he heaped praise on the Barcelona star ahead of Manchester United’s Europa League tie at the Nou Camp.
The two clubs appeared to have reached agreement over a deal for De Jong last summer, but the Dutchman opted to stay with the Catalan giants.
The decision has paid off for De Jong who is back in the team and playing some of his best football as Barca have gone to the top of La Liga.
However, it’s understood that Ten Hag has not given up hope of signing the man who launched his career under the United manager at Ajax, and could make another bid at the end of the season.
Ten Hag was certainly effusive in his praise of De Jong before the first leg of the play-off at the Nou Camp on Thursday night.
Frenkie de Jong’s Barcelona face Manchester United on Thursday© Provided by Daily Mail
United attempted to sign the Dutch midfielder last summer© Provided by Daily Mail
Erik ten Hag opens the door to a fresh bid for Frenkie de Jong© Provided by Daily Mail
He said: ‘Frenkie is an incredible player. For every club in the whole world, he will strengthen the squad because he has a unique quality. If you can get him in the squad your team will be stronger.
‘We (Ajax) had a class in 2019 that was a team with a lot of fascination. He brings a lot of fascination and he develops, and in Spain he became even better.
‘He’s a fantastic player. He plays out from the back, he always has time and it was a pleasure to work with him.’
Earlier, Barca coach Xavi insisted that De Jong is happy at the club after all the speculation over his future last summer when an issue over unpaid wages at his club proved a stumbling block in negotiations.
‘I think he was really glad,’ said Xavi. ‘He wanted to stay with us, there was not a doubt. He is our player and I’m really happy with his leadership and performance. I think Frenkie is enjoying being on the pitch and that is the most important thing.’
Ten Hag is a big fan of De Jong after previously managing him when they were at Ajax
Source: msn
