Barcelona captain inching closer to an exit as contract talks stall – report | OneFootball

Frenkie de Jong’s performance against Valencia was one of the many positives for Barcelona manager Hansi Flick to take away from the 7-1 thrashing.

The Dutchman started in midfield in Pedri’s absence and played the entire 90 minutes, dishing out a performance to be proud of and carrying forward his good run of form.

De Jong is slowly gaining ground in Flick’s plans and establishing himself as a reliable player once more. His contractual situation, however, remains as uncertain as it was months ago.

Departure inevitable?

As relayed in a recent report by Fichajes, De Jong has openly stated his comfort at Barcelona and the joy he gets in representing the Blaugrana crest repeatedly.

Concurrently, however, he has not put any steps forward towards renewing his deal at the club despite the board’s best efforts.

Contract runs out in 2026. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

His current deal with Barcelona runs out in the summer of 2026 and the club hope to tie him down and complete a renewal. Given their complicated economic situation, however, they ask for the player to compromise on his wages as so many others have.

De Jong, however, is not willing to accept such a reduction and is thus stalling talks with the club claiming that there is still time for it to become a matter of immediate importance.

With Barcelona having their hands tied over the financial situation and De Jong unwilling to compromise, the exit doors appear to be open for the captain who has attracted no shortage of interest in recent transfer windows.

Clubs like Manchester United and Bayern Munich have been linked to his signing in the past and a departure does not look unlikely despite him seeing more minutes off late.

So far this season, the 27-year-old has played 350 minutes for Barcelona in La Liga and has a goal and an assist to his name. Last night’s game against Valencia was one of his best showings of the season.