Barcelona’s €45 million-rated club captain now open to renewing his contract

Frenkie de Jong is currently experiencing a positive period at Barcelona, following several months of difficulties.

The 27-year-old is playing without the ankle issues that plagued him for almost the entire previous season, and which also kept him sidelined during the first half of the current campaign.

The Dutch midfielder is now being incorporated into the plans of new coach Hansi Flick, even starting yesterday’s match against Valencia, with the midfielder impressing heavily.

De Jong open to renewal

As a result of this turnaround, in which he is rediscovering his top-level form and has been given an important role under Flick, De Jong is now more inclined to renew his contract with Barcelona, reports Mundo Deportivo.

The Netherlands international’s current contract is set to expire on 30 June 2026 and talks over a new deal hit a standstill after the midfielder went without responding to the club’s previous extension offer for months.

The Blaugrana consider that offer as expired and will thus start fresh negotiations from scratch. For now, though, the sporting department is waiting to see how the season concludes and how he performs during the decisive phase of the campaign.

It is clear that Flick is fond of De Jong and trusts his qualities. It is also worth noting that club club president Joan Laporta has always spoken highly of the midfielder, and that director Deco has made efforts to retain him.

However, there is a well-known issue – De Jong’s high salary – and Barcelona would prefer that, if he stays, his wages be in line with their current financial situation.

The coming months will be pivotal for De Jong, and his performances will influence the club’s decisions regarding his future.

What Barcelona want to avoid is having him leave on a free transfer in 2026. If the ex-Ajax ace decides to go down that route, the club will push hard next summer to prevent this from happening.

Should he follow through with it, De Jong risks facing a challenging 2025/26 season in terms of his playing time, as one of Laporta’s red lines is to avoid having players in the squad who are less than a year away from their contract expiring.

*Player valuation in title obtained from transfermarkt.com on date of publication.