Three Manchester United stars can give Erik ten Hag what he desired from Frenkie de Jong
Frenkie de Jong was supposed to be Manchester United’s one-stop solution in the engine room.
United have signed five midfielders, including Sofyan Amrabat, since their highly publicized pursuit of Barcelona’s playmaker failed during the summer of 2017.
The question is whether Erik ten Hag now has what he initially desired from his erstwhile Ajax protégé.
As fate would have it, Ten Hag and De Jong were reunited during the previous season. However, that was from the opposing team as United played Barcelona in two legs of the Europa League.
During media formalities, those two abortive attempts to bring the 26-year-old, all-action Dutch midfielder to Old Trafford last summer naturally took center stage.
Ten Hag used one such occasion to lavish De Jong with praise, as if to remind United of what they had missed.
“Frenkie is an incredible player, and he will strengthen the squad at every club in the world because he possesses a unique quality,” said Ten Hag without reservation.
If you are able to recruit him, your team will be stronger. In Spain, he improved even further [than during their time at Ajax].
“He is an outstanding player who plays out of the back. Always accommodating, it was a delight to work with him.
De Jong did (re)prove himself to Xavi last season as they won yet another La Liga championship despite initially appearing to have no role whatsoever.
Since the great Sergio Busquets left and faded away to the MLS with Lionel Messi at Inter Miami, however, his significance at Camp Nou has been emphasized even more.
De Jong has replaced Busquets in the four-man midfield box formation favored by Xavi in Catalonia.
After four games this season, the Dutchman is the only player in the division to have completed more than 400 passes (451), and his astounding 93.79 percent completion rate once again makes him Spain’s best player.
Additionally, he has the most progressive carries (94) and ball recoveries (36) in the league. You have the idea.
Those statistics illustrate why Ten Hag and United tried so desperately to sign him, but the crucial reality is that De Jong refused to sign at that time, and a backup plan had to be devised.
United may eventually be in a position to give Ten Hag what he desired from De Jong after five acquisitions totaling £120 million or more.
In this modern Barcelona team, Casemiro, Amrabat, and Bruno Fernandes are specialists in particular metrics that De Jong has evidently mastered on his own. United, however, will distribute their responsibilities as Ten Hag forms a midfield triumvirate that will make him temporarily forget about De Jong.
Three Manchester United stars can give Erik ten Hag what he desired from Frenkie de Jong