Chelsea have been handed a major blow in their efforts to sign Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong. The 25-year-old has been heavily linked with an exit from the Camp Nou this summer as the Spanish giants continue to seek a solution to their well-documented financial woes.
football.london understands that the west Londoners have 'liked' the idea of signing De Jong for a few years now. And, while Thomas Tuchel faces great competition from Erik ten Hag for the Netherland international's signature, the Blues boss is confident of beating Manchester United to a deal.
While reports have said that De Jong would prefer a move to Stamford Bridge over Old Trafford despite the Red Devils emerging as the most engrossed potential suitor, he's now taken new measures to ensure an exit is off the cards. According to Spanish newspaper AS, the Dutchman would be open to taking a pay cut in order to stay at the Camp Nou.
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De Jong, who sees his contract at Barcelona expire in 2026, is said to earn close to £ 360,000 a week, making him one of the best-paid players. But, the Spanish giants owe him £17million in deferred wages from the pandemic, according to The Telegraph.
The report adds that agreed to reduce his salary by £9.4million in 2020/21 and by £4.3million last season, meaning that he's owed £13.7million in basic wages. De Jong is also owed £3.4million in waived bonuses for playing in at least 60 per cent of Barcelona's matches across the previous two seasons.
But, despite the financial strain on the club and De Jong unconvinced by an exit, another aforementioned wage reduction seems the only solution. Barcelona transfer chief Joan Laporta has insisted that the midfielder is not for sale and, as quoted by the Mirror earlier this month, he said: "Frenkie de Jong is a Barcelona player. We don't want to sell him unless we have no other choice.
"Of course, we know there are offers for De Jong, but we don't want to sell him. There are clubs that want him, not just United. We have no intention of selling him, he wants to stay.
"Frenkie is considered as one of the best midfielders in the world by all the experts. We are happy to have him. I'm going to do everything I can in my power so that Frenkie stays here, but there's also a salary issue, and that would have to be adjusted."
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