It's already been a summer of change at Manchester United and there's plenty more to come.
12.05.2022 - 15:05 / manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Manchester United continue to be linked with Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong, as preparation for next season ramps up.
Speculation linking De Jong with a United transfer have been relentless over the last few weeks, following the club confirming the appointment of his former manager Erik ten Hag as United's manager next season. Manchester Evening News understands that United have contacted Barcelona about De Jong's potential availability this summer and are weighing up a potential £75million move for Ten Hag's former midfield maestro.
The 25-year-old joined Barcelona for £65million in 2019 following Ajax's incredible Champions League campaign, in which they reached the semi-finals of the competition under Ten Hag. De Jong, Mathijs de Ligt, Hakim Ziyech and Donny van de Beek sealed moves away from the Dutch club following their defeat to Tottenham.
ALSO READ: We simulated Man United's summer transfer window with ten players leaving and six players signed
So, if De Jong was to make the move to United in the summer, what sort of impact could he have on Ten Hag's side? Could the midfielder help improve the team's performance?
We simulated the 2022-23 season with De Jong in the United squad and this is what happened.
To set up this simulation, we used the Football Manager 2022 editor to arrange for De Jong to join United at the start of the summer transfer window with Ten Hag as manager of United, using FM22 to run the simulation. Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard, Edinson Cavani, Juan Mata, Tahith Chong and Lee Grant were all released, whilst Nemanja Matic, Axel Tuanzebe and Anthony Martial were all sold.
This is what De Jong's in-game profile looks like on FM22.
The 24-year-old has brilliant technical, mental and physical
It's already been a summer of change at Manchester United and there's plenty more to come.
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