When Barcelona signed Frenkie de Jong back in 2019, very few could have thought that the Dutchman would become a liability six years later.
But fast forward to 2025, and De Jong has become a liability for Barcelona. The former Ajax star offers very little performance on the field, but earns one of the highest salaries on the team.
De Jong has already fallen behind Marc Casado, Pedri and Gavi in the pecking order. Nor is his situation likely to improve any time soon.
No progress on the renovation front
Taking into account De Jong’s problems at Barça, the club’s idea was to renew the Dutch international’s contract by significantly reducing his salary, but extending his stay.
However, according to Diario SPORT, Barcelona has made absolutely no progress regarding talks with De Jong.
It seems that neither the midfielder nor his agents have shown any intention to renew with Barcelona.
It should be noted that the midfielder shares a fractured relationship with the board since the club tried to expel him from Barcelona a few years ago.
Since then, De Jong has had some resentment with the Barcelona board. And taking this into account, Barça fears the worst regarding the midfielder’s future.
In fact, Barça fears that De Jong’s idea is to remain at Barcelona until the end of his contract, which expires in 2026, and then leave as a free agent.
This will cause maximum damage to Barcelona’s finances, considering that the Dutchman is one of the highest-paid players not only in the club but also in the league.
In fact, Barcelona were counting on the sale of De Jong to finance the move of ‘dream target’ Jamal Musiala next summer. But until De Jong leaves, the club will not be able to do much in the market.