Xavi willing to sell other players in order to keep Frenkie de Jong – report

Journalist Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Xavi is doing everything in his power to keep Frenkie de Jong out of Manchester United’s clutches. And for that, he is willing to let the other players leave in order to solve the club’s economic situation.

De Jong has been on Man United’s radar ever since the Red Devils roped in Erik ten Hag from Ajax. With Donny van de Beek already at the club, it is believed that the manager wants to reunite the two at Old Trafford.

While the interest is very much public, Xavi has no desire to part ways and even the player is prioritizing playing the Champions League football.

“Xavi wants to keep de Jong and de Jong wants to play the Champions League football and he will have this possibility with Barcelona next season,” said Romano on his YouTube channel.

Despite the respective desires, Barcelona’s ongoing crisis in terms of finances are very well known. Hence, while the manager is unwilling to do any business, Barcelona will only consider bids of above €80 million for their midfielder.

“The financial situation, as Xavi mentioned, has to be considered,” he added.

“This is why everything depends on the price. Barcelona will only accept an important bid for the midfielder; €80-90 million euros and no less than this. Despite all this, Xavi is still hoping to keep the player.”

United know signing de Jong will need some heavy convincing since they have already missed out on the Champions League. Hence, the management is willing to let Erik ten Hag do all the talking.

“What happens with Manchester United? De Jong is a part of the list,” said Romano. 

“But if United have any chance to convince de Jong, it will be because of Erik ten Hag. And so, he needs to put some pressure in order to do the convincing because the midfielder’s priority is the Champions League football.”

Despite the interest, however, United haven’t launched any official bid, but at the same time, Barcelona know what their Premier League counterparts are working on.

“As of today, there is still no official proposal from Manchester United, but Barcelona know what the Premier League side is looking for. Everything is in the early stages, but it’s clear that United do have an interest,” the journalist concluded.