Manchester United “clear favourites” for Barcelona star amid contract dispute

According to reports, Manchester United have emerged as “clear favourites” to sign one Barcelona star in the 2025 summer transfer window.

Manchester United are already gearing up for the 2025 January and summer transfer windows as Sir Jim Ratcliffe‘s leadership team continues their ambitious rebuild.

While the club’s ultimate goal is to secure the 2028 Premier League title, they are currently focused on a comprehensive squad overhaul, guided by Erik ten Hag at Old Trafford.

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Last summer saw the departure of 14 players, whether through sales, loans, or contract releases, with five new first-team signings brought in to strengthen the squad.

Additionally, several Academy talents have been recruited, poised to integrate into the first team over the coming seasons as the INEOS vision for the club progresses.

United dance with De Jong

While United will undoubtedly look to offload more players across the following two transfer windows, the club have reportedly climbed to clear favourites for Barcelona star Frenkie de Jong.

This is according to the Spanish outlet Fichajes, which claims that the Dutch international and his club are currently at an impasse over talks surrounding an extension of his current deal, which expires in 2026.

Although his future is far from confirmed, the report states that “everything points to him leaving Barcelona next summer” and that there is a “strong possibility” that Ten Hag will step in to sign the man he tried to sign in 2022.

If a contract is not agreed upon by the time the 2025 summer window hits, Barcelona is said to try to offload him to prevent the player from leaving for free in 2026.

Clear favourites

Further, CaughtOffside states that United are “clear favourites” for De Jong, who has 38 goals in 215 club games.

De Jong is well known to be good friends with summer signing Matthijs de Ligt and has previously played with André Onana under the guise of Ten Hag at Ajax.

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