Supporters reckon Barcelona are trying to send a message to Manchester United target Frenkie de Jong after Xavi once again played the central midfielder out of position in a pre-season game.
De Jong, 25, remains the priority target for United this summer, although discussions over his prospective transfer have stalled. United have signed Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez as part of their rebuild under newly appointed manager Erik ten Hag.
However, the player Ten Hag really wants is De Jong after coaching the Netherlands international for 18 months with Ajax when the player burst onto the European scene. De Jong signed for Barcelona three years ago and United had reached an agreement in principle with the cash-strapped Catalan giants for his signature.
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Discussions over his move have now been going on for almost three months, but De Jong jetted across to the United States with his Barcelona teammates for their pre-season tour. But in the last two games, the former Ajax graduate has been used, quite surprisingly, as a centre-back when coming off the substitutes bench.
Indeed, that was the case in the early hours when Barcelona met Real Madrid on the Las Vegas strip.
And naturally United supporters kept a keen eye on that showdown as Barca summer signing Raphinha settled the scores in a 1-0 victory. But it was De Jong who took centre stage especially as he continued in an unfamiliar role, with other players being preferred by Barcelona manager Xavi in central midfield.
Here are a selection of comments about that decision from United fans on Twitter:
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