Frenkie de Jong’s girlfriend pokes fun at Man Utd in clever response

Ten Hag hints at Man Utd debut for Marcel Sabitzer

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The girlfriend of Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong has joked about the date that he will ‘arrive’ at Manchester United after being quizzed on the prospect of a move to Old Trafford on social media. The Red Devils are said to be long-term admirers of De Jong, who they attempted to sign last summer but were ultimately left empty-handed as a result of his desire to remain at the Nou Camp.

The Dutchman emerged as Erik ten Hag’s top target and was the subject of a long and drawn-out chase for his signature before United eventually gave up on their pursuit and opted to land Casemiro from Real Madrid instead. The possibility of a future move has remained strong in the months since the end of the summer transfer window, though, with United still believed to be open to bringing De Jong to Old Trafford.

The player’s girlfriend, Mikky Kiemeney, was asked by a follower on Instagram on Monday when De Jong would be arriving in Manchester and wasted no time in delivering a clever response. She replied with a screenshot of United’s list of fixtures which included their upcoming home match against Barcelona, which is set for later this month, alongside the caption: “23-2 I guess.”

De Jong will indeed be arriving in Manchester before the end of February to play for Barcelona against United in the second of two legs in the Europa League knockout stages. He will be desperate to put in a strong performance for the Catalan giants in order to ensure their progression in the decisive fixture, while an influential showing will also show Ten Hag what he is missing at United after failing to add the 25-year-old to his ranks over the summer.

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The Red Devils manager is believed to be keen on signing another midfielder in advance of next season, although his priority will reportedly be the addition of a new first-choice striker to lead the line for the foreseeable future. United moved to secure a stop-gap solution in the form of Wout Weghorst last month but will undoubtedly be eager to splash out on a permanent talisman when the transfer market reopens later this year.

De Jong, meanwhile, remains under contract at Barcelona until the summer of 2026 and has emerged as a hugely important player under Xavi over the course of this season. He has played the entire 90 minutes in each of Barcelona’s last three matches but there is still a chance that they will be forced to offload high-value players in the summer in order to alleviate their well-documented financial problems.

Ten Hag is said to believe that De Jong would fit perfectly into his squad at United and is reportedly keen to revisit the idea of bringing him to the club when the current campaign draws to a close. He previously managed the Barcelona playmaker during his time in charge of Ajax and insisted at the time that he is better when deployed in a box-to-box role than he is as a deep-lying midfielder, which suggests that he could thrive alongside the likes of Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes at Old Trafford.

“We have really been looking to find ways to use his skills in the best manner,” said Ten Hag while at Ajax back in 2019. “Where can he play best, for the team and to showcase his talent? Everyone was screaming that Frenkie is the biggest talent, well yes, but where?

“In midfield? OK, but which role? His quality is that he makes the forwards perform better. He is a wanderer, an adventurer, he’s always on the move, like a shark. With the ball, often, but also without the ball. So if you put him on [as a] six, he’s away too often.

“But you need to give him freedom, otherwise you can’t get the best out of him. It wasn’t an easy puzzle, so I decided to play with two sixes and only one attacking mid. And in this way, we can also dominate the half-space and force opponents to choose.”

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