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Manchester City, Barcelona Reportedly Told Frenkie de Jong Will Cost £75M

Gianni Verschueren@ReverschPassFeatured ColumnistNovember 21, 2018

ROTTERDAM, NETHERLANDS - NOVEMBER 11: Frenkie de Jong of Ajax  during the Dutch Eredivisie  match between Excelsior v Ajax at the Van Donge & De Roo Stadium on November 11, 2018 in Rotterdam Netherlands (Photo by Erwin Spek/Soccrates/Getty Images)
Soccrates Images/Getty Images

Ajax will reportedly demand a £75 million price tag for Manchester City and Barcelona transfer target Frenkie de Jong. 

According to the Mirror's David Anderson, the Dutch side feel comfortable asking for such a fee due to the many clubs interested in his services and the fact they have him under contract until 2022.

De Jong is one of two top talents making headlines for Ajax this season, and both he and Matthijs de Ligt have been linked with a host of top clubs.

According to Anderson, the battle for De Jong will come down to the English and Spanish champions, with Barcelona eager to top any offer the Citizens make. City see him as the ideal long-term replacement for Fernandinho and want to avoid missing out on him the way they did on Jorginho.

The 21-year-old midfielder has shown his versatility this season by moving into defence for Ajax at times.

His passing is arguably his best trait, but De Jong also has quick feet that help him get out of trouble:

WhoScored.com @WhoScored

Frenkie de Jong: Of the 105 players to have attempted 10+ dribbles, only Jorrit Hendrix (91.7%) has a better dribble success rate than De Jong (83.3%) in the Eredivisie this season For more player stats -- https://t.co/bxHlmKwlDq https://t.co/R5886PK0ck

He believes it's his instincts that set him apart:

UEFA Champions League @ChampionsLeague

Frenkie de Jong: "My quality is my intuition. I can't just ignore that, can I? Then I'd be a player of whom there are a thousand of my age." #UCL #MondayMotivation https://t.co/Zbfo6c3W2H

With De Ligt and De Jong the biggest names, Ajax also have high-value assets such as Kasper Dolberg, Hakim Ziyech and David Neres in their squad.

Ajax haven't won the Eredivisie title since 2014 and will want to change that. They and PSV have dominated the Dutch top division so far this season and will need all of their top players to stop the team from Eindhoven winning their fourth title in five years.

According to Anderson, Ajax have made it clear they won't sell in January, but City have shown they can be patient in the transfer market in the past, with Riyad Mahrez a prime example.