Former Liverpool left-back Jose Enrique believes Frenkie de Jong will sign for Manchester United over Liverpool.
Both clubs were reportedly interested in the midfielder last summer, though the Red Devils seemingly came closer than their rivals, as they had agreed a fee with Barcelona.
The one stalling factor in the deal was De Jong’s desire to stay at the Catalan side and play Champions League football across the 2022/2023 campaign, which is ironic, as Barcelona were knocked out of the competition in the group stage and demoted to the Europa League, where they were then knocked out by United.
Now that things look drastically different at Old Trafford, with Erik ten Hag creating a thrilling resurgence in a once-deflated Reds side, the prospect of joining his former manager’s project may be a more tempting one.
As well as that, news broke this week that the La Liga club had been handed a transfer ban unless they can raise £178 million from player sales before the summer.
Xavi and the board will know that De Jong is a sought-after asset that they have clear alternatives for, and may decide to send him out the door to the highest bidder.
Pundit weighs in on De Jong saga
On his Instagram story, Enrique weighed in on the transfer speculation regarding the Netherlands international, saying: “I actually believe that they (United) will get him now because of Barcelona’s economic situation, and Manchester (United) is in a much better position than last season as well.”
