Man United and Man City in tug-of-war over Ajax star
Premier League
By
Mirror
| Sep 23, 2018
Pep Guardiola is ready to take on Manchester United in the battle to sign Ajax wonderkid Frenkie De Jong.
The Manchester City boss wants to sign a defensive midfielder in January, and De Jong is on his list of targets.
City are understood to have had a £50million bid for De Jong rejected by Ajax in the summer, and are ready to make another move.
The Dutch club have since continued to insist that the 21-year-old is staying in Amsterdam for at least another year, but City have not ruled out testing their resolve again in January.
De Jong has earned rave reviews for Ajax and his performances have caught the eye of some of Europe’s leading clubs, with Barcelona also interested.
Guardiola has identified defensive midfield as a weak point in his squad and the Premier League champions are still relying on Fernandinho as their destructive force there.
The Brazilian turned 33 in May, is coming off a World Cup summer and plays such a crucial role in Guardiola’s team that it has left the champions just one injury away from a crisis.
Bayern Munich’s Thiago Alcantara and Adrien Rabiot of Paris Saint-Germain are also on City’s list.
Alcantara could be an easier signing, after Bayern made it clear during the summer that they were open to offers for the Spain international midfielder.
Guardiola gave the 27-year-old his Barcelona debut when he was a teenager and brought him to Munich in an £18m deal in 2013.
Rabiot, 23, spent six months at City’s academy in 2008 before moving back to France. He is set to be out of contract at the end of the season, when he will be available on a free.
City have already registered their interest in the France international, and may look to make PSG a cash offer to tempt them to sell in January.
All three men would be free to represent the Blues in the Champions League knockout phase, assuming they get there, following the introduction of new UEFA rules this season.
City decided against rushing through a deal before the summer transfer window closed.
But Fernandinho has lacked the consistency he showed last season and Germany international Ilkay Gundogan is not suited to such a deep-lying role.
Kevin De Bruyne’s absence – the Belgian will be sidelined for another month with a knee injury – has reduced City’s physical drive from central midfield even further.
And Guardiola now wants the issue addressed in the winter window as he looks to retain the title and attack the latter stages of the Champions League.