Erik ten Hag will see his dream midfield on the Nou Camp pitch tonight, but unfortunately for the Manchester United manager, one of the trio will still be wearing Barcelona colours.
Frenkie de Jong was the central figure in United's summer transfer window of 2022. In fact, so much time and focus went into his signing that it's remarkable that the club managed to still claim a successful window, despite failing to land Ten Hag's top target.
It was in the second week of May when United first made their play for De Jong and the drama was still playing out three months later in August. When the season began and Ten Hag's team imploded against Brighton and Brentford, attention was finally diverted away from a fruitless and frustrating pursuit.
READ MORE: Xavi speaks out on United's attempts to sign De Jong
An issue over wages owed by Barca to De Jong proved insurmountable, despite the clubs agreeing an €85million fee. There was also the idea that the midfielder was reluctant to make the move. He declared signing for the Catalans as his dream in 2019 and would be swapping the Champions League for the Europa League. As it turns out, Barcelona have dropped to Europe's B-list as well for the second half of the season.
But Ten Hag had prioritised De Jong as his top target for the summer because he knew him so well from their Ajax days. United wouldn't have spent so long working on a deal, putting funds aside, if there wasn't an indication the player was interested in Old Trafford.
While De Jong was the priority, United were keeping Casemiro on hold in the background. The £70million deal to sign the holding midfielder is one of the smoothest they've pulled off in recent years. They made contact early in the window, kept contact going and then moved when the season started so poorly. It remained below the radar for most of that process.
On the face of it, pivoting from the Barcelona playmaker to the Real Madrid destroyer is quite a contrast, but there are similarities. Casemiro's ability to pick a forward pass isn't far from De Jong's level.
The deal to sign Casemiro doesn't necessarily end the interest in De Jong, either. Ten Hag is still an admirer of the 25-year-old and could make another move for him. Casemiro and Christian Eriksen arrived last summer but there is still a question mark over the depth in midfield and Ten Hag wants a younger creative midfielder.
Barcelona might have been keen to bank the money for De Jong and get his wages off the books, but Xavi always gave the impression he wanted to keep him. He has started 16 of the club's last 18 games and has been excellent this season.
“The key to his resurgence is the confidence we are giving him,” Xavi said last week. “He feels happy, comfortable, and important in the team. He is a total midfield player, and has everything he needs to perform well.”
Ten Hag would agree with the assertion that De Jong is a "total midfield player". On the eve of tonight's Europa League play-off fixture, Xavi also claimed that he felt the player wanted to stay at Barcelona last summer.
"I think he was really clear to me - he wanted to stay with us, so there was not a doubt," he said. "Now he is our player and I am really happy with his performance, with his leadership. He is enjoying himself on the pitch and that is the most important thing."
Xavi would want to keep De Jong again, but the decision might not be his. Barcelona have pulled plenty of levers but exiting the Champions League at the group stage hasn't helped their financial situation and they might have to consider a big-name sale as well.
He won't be United's top priority this summer, either. A striker is top of the bill and an elite No. 9 is more pressing than another midfielder. Someone like Victor Osimhen would improve this team more than adding De Jong.
But if the finance permits another move for the midfielder and Barcelona consider a sale again, Ten Hag would be keen to make it happen. United's midfield has improved beyond all recognition this season, but add De Jong in between Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes and it would be capable of matching any in Europe.
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