Manchester United are reportedly preparing one final contract offer for Frenkie de Jong in the hope of convincing the Barcelona midfielder to move to Old Trafford.
The Red Devils have been strongly linked with the Netherlands international over the last couple of months but have thus far been unsuccessful in their attempts to sign him.
De Jong is said to be determined to remain at Camp Nou this summer, with the midfielder calling the Catalan side his "dream club" when asked about the interest back in June.
"I prefer to stay with Barcelona. Barcelona is just my dream club. Also from a young age. I just said it too. I've never regretted my choice despite the fact that I had hoped for more in terms of prizes than I've achieved so far. But I have never regretted my choice," the midfielder told ESPN.
Barcelona have been active during this summer's transfer market amid their financial problems, but they are under pressure to make a big sale in order to register their new signings for the 2022-23 campaign.
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The club's president Joan Laporta recently insisted that they are keen to keep hold of the midfielder this summer despite the ongoing speculation.
"Frenkie is Barca player. We want him to stay, he wants to stay. We've received important bids for him but he's our player," Laporta told reporters. "You know salary budget situation; so we will do our best to keep Frenkie at Barca... and I hope he'll do the same."
However, Barcelona are privately said to be keen to move the Dutchman on due to his high transfer value and substantial wage packet, which would increase for the new season.
According to Sport, Man United are preparing to make a final contract offer to the midfielder, which would see him become the highest-paid player in their squad.
The report claims that the 20-time English champions are also willing to pay the £14m that De Jong is owed in deferred wages by the Catalan side, which is believed to be one of the main obstacles currently preventing his exit.
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Man United's absence from this season's Champions League is said to be a huge problem for De Jong, who has also been strongly linked with Chelsea and Bayern Munich.
However, it is understood that neither Chelsea nor Bayern would be prepared to match Man United's transfer offer, so Barcelona are keen to sell him to the 20-time English champions.
De Jong made 46 appearances for Barcelona in all competitions during the 2021-22 campaign, contributing four goals and five assists in the process.
Meanwhile, he has represented the La Liga side on 138 occasions since arriving from Ajax in 2016, contributing 13 goals and 17 assists, winning the Copa del Rey in 2020-21.
De Jong has been involved in Barcelona's preparations for the 2022-23 campaign and was named in the starting side for Saturday night's pre-season friendly with New York Red Bulls.
Matt Law
