Manchester United are plotting one final attempt to persuade Frenkie de Jong that Old Trafford is the place to be next season despite the Barcelona midfielder's reluctance.
The Netherlands international has long been the subject of intense interest from the Red Devils, but has shown very little sign of wanting to reunite with his former Ajax boss Erik ten Hag in England. However, given Barcelona's perilous financial position, the La Liga giants are actually keen on the idea of parting ways with De Jong.
The 25-year-old is viewed among Barcelona's hierarchy as one of the few players on the books that could actually generate the club some cash in the form of a hefty transfer fee. United and Barcelona are reported to have agreed a figure of around £63million plus add-ons, but the deal soon stalled due to De Jong's desire to stay at the Camp Nou.
While the hard work in terms of negotiating with Barcelona is done, United are now rumoured to be putting together a wage package that De Jong will be unable to refuse in a bid to get him to sign. The midfielder is currently in the United States on Barcelona's pre-season tour, but United are hoping to meet with his representatives upon his return.
In an attempt to try and force him out, Barcelona have informed De Jong that unless he agrees to significantly lower his current salary he is unlikely to feature much next season. Any potential exit is complicated further by the fact Barcelona still owe De Jong as much as £17m in deferred wages.
Those same unpaid wages sparked a call from Gary Neville for De Jong to take legal action against his club. The pundit tweeted: "De Jong should consider legal action v Barcelona and all players should be behind him! A club spending fortunes on new players whilst not paying the ones they have under contract their full money is immoral and a breach."
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Neville's claim was swiftly responded to by Barcelona president Joan Laporta, who told CBS Sports : "No answer. I respect his opinion. But in my opinion he's not right because I insist we are respecting all our players.
"We follow the contracts. If we invest in new players it's to make the club more competitive. It's a circle: You invest in new players, the fans engage and that in turn improves our economy. Gary has been a very good football player for Manchester United. I respect his opinion and that's all I have to say."
In a surprising twist, a report from Spanish outlet Sport claims that United are so keen on signing De Jong they have agreed to cover the outstanding payments owed to him by the Blaugrana. United officials are also allegedly willing to make the former Ajax star the highest paid player at the club, leapfrogging wantaway star Cristiano Ronaldo in the wage-bill - though that feels difficult to imagine.
De Jong's opposition to joining United stems from purely footballing reasons, with the Dutchman desperate to remain at a club who boast Champions League football.
