Erik ten Hag hands Man Utd chiefs clear instructions after private De Jong chat

Erik ten Hag has handed Manchester United transfer chiefs clear instructions after speaking with Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong.

The Red Devils have made a breakthrough in their attempts to sign the Dutch international after the club did not give up hope on a deal despite negotiations now entering their 13th week. United CEO Richard Arnold and football director John Murtough visited the Catalan capital last month to finalise terms over a transfer with Barca.

An initial fee of £56.2million is in place with a total transfer increasing up to £72million although no final agreement is yet in place with the player due to an outstanding amount in the region of €17million in back payments owed to De Jong by the Catalan club.

De Jong is one of the highest earners at Barcelona and he is additionally owed a series of payments through amortizations and other clauses that are part of his deal. The problem for the club is that they are currently unable to process such payments, complicating the player's future.

As outlined by Diario Sport, United boss Ten Hag remains calm about the situation and is confident that a deal will come to fruition. The reasoning behind this stance is explained by the fact he has recently spoken to the midfielder privately and is aware of his position.

Ten Hag has informed United to continue waiting for the situation to resolve itself, as the player wants the monies that are owed to him and there is a belief that this stumbling block will soon be cleared due to Barca's requirement for removing the player from their wage bill.

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Andreas Christensen, Franck Kessie, Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski and Jules Kounde have all joined Barca's ranks this summer as the club look to immediately challenge for major honours again after a three-season drought of the title in La Liga and without a Champions League final appearance since 2015. Yet in order to register new players with La Liga, sales must be made - and De Jong is top of the list.

New United boss Erik ten Hag held a phone call to convince the player that he should join his project at Old Trafford. De Jong, 25, was informed that he would be the 'conductor of the orchestra' and would be an undisputed starter under Ten Hag - a similar role to the one he enjoyed so much in Amsterdam. The central midfield star initially rose to prominence at Ajax under Ten Hag.

United have had a relatively quiet transfer window to date with only Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez signed - with central midfield a priority position following the summer exits of Paul Pogba and Nemanja Matic.