Man Utd target Frenkie de Jong slams ‘false’ claims over his Barcelona salary
Frenkie de Jong has denied being Barcelona's highest-paid player since the departure of Lionel Messi while explaining why his current wages might look inflated.
The Manchester United target has admitted to taking temporary wage cuts during each of his first three seasons as the club – which will make his salary look larger when they are repaid.
The 25-year-old has not been a certain starter under Xavi despite the Spaniard's praise over his ability, with plenty said about his estimated weekly wage of £400,000.
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When asked by Dutch outlet Ziggo Sport if there was a burden to being Barcelona's best paid player since Lionel Messi's departure, De Jong hit back.
He said: "I don't think I am. There has been a campaign. Look, I never spoke a word myself. But the club is spreading, or the media that's part of the club, has been spreading lies and a lot is fake.
"In each of the first three years I played here, I cut my salary. So eventually money has to come back and it will drop on your normal salary so of course it will look bigger.
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"I think many people don't understand this, the numbers the media are spreading are fake."
Forbes report that former Ajax midfielder De Jong is set to earn £15.5million across the final four years of his contract at the Nou Camp.
That comes after Barcelona's debt rose to the region of £1.4billion, with president Joan Laporta looking at cost-cutting measures while securing free transfers for Robert Lewandowski and Andreas Christensen among others.
Despite United agreeing a deal with Barcelona early in the summer, the player himself was never keen on a switch to Old Trafford.
He explained "I always wanted to stay at Barcelona and this is why I always remained calm in the summer."
That came despite De Jong being close with Erik ten Hag from their time together at Ajax, with United going on to secure a deal with Real Madrid for Casemiro.
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