Juventus’ pursuit of Barcelona star midfielder Frenkie de Jong has suffered a setback as Xavi provided an update on the Dutchman’s future at the Camp Nou. In his latest interview, the Blaugrana boss admitted that the ex-Ajax man holds a special place in the club’s future project and has effectively quashed speculation about the player’s summer exit.
“De Jong is Barca’s present and future,” said Xavi, as quoted by Calciomercato. Despite having had an underwhelming season by his standards, the Dutch midfielder remains one of the central figures at the Camp Nou as the club look to overhaul their squad after a few disappointing years.
Barcelona spent €75m to sign De Jong from Ajax in 2019. The 24-year-old joined La Liga three years ago and was considered one of the most exciting rising midfielders in European football. So far, however, he has not been able to live up to expectations.
De Jong’s underperforming performances at Catalonia coincided with Barca’s recent fall. With Blaugrana suffering from Lionel Messi’s departure, many star players under Xavi are struggling to find their feet under Xavi, including the Dutchman.
De Jong is unsettled in La Liga and has emerged as a potential transfer target for Juventus. The Italian record champions were hoping to reunite the former Lancer prodigy with ex-teammate Matthijs de Ligt at the Allianz Stadium.
Juve’s interest in De Jong is somewhat understandable given that Massimiliano Allegri is looking to reshape his midfield options in the summer. Adrien Rabiot and Arthur could bid farewell to Juventus at the end of the season after another lackluster season.
The duo’s potential departure would leave Allegri with no options in the middle of the park. As such, Juventus are on the lookout for a new deep midfielder to inject fresh blood into their depleted midfield department.
Unfortunately, Xavi’s latest words mean Juventus will have to look elsewhere.
