DBasia.news – FC Barcelona won the rivalry of signing the 21-year-old Dutch midfielder Frenkie de Jong. Barca won the rivalry against big clubs like Juventus, Manchester City, Real Madrid, dan Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).
Barcelona released that they signed him worth €86M for the five-year contract until 20244.
“FC Barcelona and Ajax have reached an agreement for the transfer of midfielder Frenkie de Jong, who will be joining the Catalan club from 1 July 2019,” said the statement in Barcelona’s official website.
“The cost of the transfer operation is 75 million euros, plus a further 11 million in variables. The player will be signing a contract for the next five seasons, through to 2023/24. The president Josep Maria Bartomeu and the CEO Òscar Grau were personally involved in closing the deal in Amsterdam.”
Barca did a similar thing to how Chelsea signed Christian Pulisic from Borussia Dortmund. Both players are confirmed during this winter transfer market, but would join the club next summer.
The €86M placed De Jong as the most expensive Dutch player of all time. Below him, there are Virgil van Dijk (84,4 million euro), Marc Overmars (40 million euro), Arjen Robben (36 million euro), and Memphis Depay (34 million euro). Overmars was signed by Barcelona from Arsenal in 2000.
So far, De Jong placed 68 matches with Ajax, scoring 6 goals and 12 assists. He also scored 5 caps with the Netherland national team. In 2017, De Jong helped Ajax qualified for the final round of Europa League.
Ajax CEO Edwin van der Sar is delighted with De Jong’s arrival. Moreover, the Dutch player always has the good tradition in Barcelona. The Manchester United legend prays the best for De Jong.
“Busy day at the office but great move for Frenkie de Jong going to fantastic club like @FCBarcelona for the new season,” @vdsar1970 tweeted.
“Good understanding between 2 European heavyweights with philosophy and culture to nurture players. Now focus on @afcajax for the remainder of the season.”
“Congratulations @FCBarcelona with the signing of Frenkie de Jong. We share the same philosophy and culture between our two great clubs so take good care of him in the new season,” he added.
For those who haven’t notice De Jong, the Willem II academy alumni’s performance is similar to Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez. With his great technical skill, De Jong has the accurate passing and top playing vision. He could play either the defending midfielder or the attack creator in the midfield.