Barcelona and Frenkie de Jong were intended for a bitter split this summer at one point, but after an excellent second half of the season under Hansi Flick, the relationship between club and player took a U-turn. The 27-year-old is now ready to sign a new deal with the Blaugrana.
De Jong's salary is one of the highest in the team, and the new deal is expected to bring its wages into line with the rest of the team. Barcelona has reportedly reached a rough agreement to extend his deal, but because no progress has been made in the direction of the deal that is inked.
According to Diario AS, the delay is due to De Jong's former agent Ali Dursun. De Jong split with Dursun to speed up the negotiations with Barcelona earlier this year, but it is not yet clear who De Jong has worked to close this new deal.
Nevertheless, Dursun, from HCM Sports, is supposedly making De Jong's divorce process difficult, and until their working relationship has ended, Barcelona cannot sign the new deal with the Dutchman.
Flick had no trouble introducing De Jong into the starting line-up as soon as he looked sharp, and he took the place of Marc Casado in the season. Next year it seems that the Dutchman will have a severe battle for minutes, with Pedri a fixture next to him.
Marc Bernal will undoubtedly need some time to return to full fitness after his cruciate ligament injury last season, but he plays in the same position in theory. In the meantime, Gavi sometimes played deeper towards the end of the campaign. Flick will have at least three alternatives to De Jong, should his level fall.