In what has been Erik Ten Hag’s remarkable debut season as manager, Manchester United has accomplished what they set out to do this season by qualifying for the 2023–24 Champions League.

This season, the Dutchman has also won the Carabao Cup. This Saturday, when the Red Devils play fierce rivals Manchester City in the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium, he will have the opportunity to win a second trophy.

Manchester United’s focus will shift to evaluating prospective signings in the summer transfer window after the dust has settled after a long season.

According to 90 minutes, Manchester United was eager to sign midfielder Frenkie De Jong from Barcelona and even made an offer to try to land his services.

According to Mundo Deportivo via The Daily Express, Barcelona may try to renegotiate De Jong’s terms at Spotify Camp Nou amid rumours that the Catalan giants may need to recoup £176 million in the off-season before they can approve their transfer business. This has given the Red Devils some fresh hope of reviving their interest in the Netherlands international.

Why is Frenkie De Jong regarded so highly? Should Manchester United be interested in him?

Journalist Dean Jones believes that De Jong would be a wise addition from Manchester United and would better fit Ten Hag’s concept for the team than someone like Neymar, with whom the Red Devils have recently been linked.

De Jong is a better acquisition for Manchester United than Neymar, according to Jones, who said: “He fits with the spirit of what and how he’s truly trying to develop. If you sign Neymar, it won’t solve any of your issues, and it’ll also change the atmosphere in the locker room in a way that might be unfavourable.

The 53-year-old manager Ten Hag was quoted by ESPN earlier this year as saying: “Frenkie is an incredible player and for every club in the whole world he will strengthen the squad because he has a unique quality.” ESPN also quoted manager Ten Hag as saying: “Frenkie is an incredible player and for Manchester United are not completely closed off to’reigniting their interest’ in De Jong.”Your team will be more effective if you can include him in the roster. In Spain, he improved even more. It was a pleasure working with him because he plays out from the back and is a wonderful player.

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According to Transfermarkt, the 26-year-old played 42 times for Barcelona in all competitions in 2022–23, with two goals and four assists.

There is a case to be made that De Jong would make the ideal Casemiro teammate, possibly playing in a double-pivot formation with Bruno Fernandes supporting attacking phases of play a little higher up in either a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 variation, which is sometimes Ten Hag’s preferred formation, according to SPORF.

Casemiro and De Jong have exactly the same average match rating of 7.17 this season for their on-field accomplishments, according to WhoScored, which demonstrates that the comparison between them should not be based on who is superior but rather on how they have both developed into reliable assets for their respective clubs.

De Jong, who might cost roughly £63 million, has a pass success percentage of 91.3%, placing him highly in the field. This could give some stability to the midfield and free up Casemiro to handle winning duels. The Brazilian international, who makes £350k a week with the Red Devils, has made 3.2 tackles on average per game this season.

The fact that De Jong successfully completed 109 shot-creating actions in all of La Liga shows that he is a capable player when it comes to giving his teammates opportunities.

Barcelona defender Ronald Araujo, who was quoted by Barca TV via The Manchester Evening News, praised the former Ajax player in an interview, saying: “Here is the best midfielder in the world, Frenkie de Jong!”

Considering that Manchester United is rumoured to be looking to acquire several players this summer, Ten Hag’s decision to sign £622,000 per week earning De Jong would be a stroke of genius and might result in the formation of an explosive tandem at Old Trafford with Casemiro.