Exclusive: Former Man Utd & Chelsea transfer target not currently set for new contract talks, says expert

Manchester United and Chelsea may have had a past interest in Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong, but at the moment there is nothing happening on that front as he wants to stay at the Nou Camp, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Speaking to CaughtOffside for his exclusive Daily Briefing column, Romano did mention, however, that talks over a new contract at Barca are not currently imminent for De Jong, with any such discussions all on hold until at least 2024.

Man Utd and Chelsea have signed other midfielders since they were first linked with De Jong, but one imagines they’d surely still have to consider someone as talented as the Netherlands international if he were to become available at some point in the near future.

That doesn’t necessarily look likely to happen, according to Romano, as the player remains happy with life at Barca, but it might be interesting to keep an eye on his situation if talks over a new deal with the Catalan giants don’t get started soon.

“There have been reports about the club prioritising contract talks with Frenkie de Jong, but my understanding is that this is not going to happen now,” Romano said.

“Barca won’t sign any contract extensions in 2023, all talks will take place in 2024, including De Jong, who is for sure a key player for Barca’s plans.

“Of course there was past interest from Manchester United and Chelsea, but there is nothing to say at this stage as Frenkie has always been clear: he wants to play for Barca.”

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