Robin van Persie Backs Frenkie de Jong Choosing Barcelona over Manchester City

Ajax ace Frenkie de Jong was right to reject Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain in favour of a summer transfer to Barcelona, Netherlands legend Robin van Persie has said, adding he would make the same decision if presented the choice.

Barcelona confirmed on Wednesday that they had reached a deal with Ajax to sign De Jong, 21, this summer for a fee rising as high as €86 million (£74.8 million).

Speaking to NOS (h/t FourFourTwo), Van Persie supported his Dutch countryman and predicted success for the midfielder when he moves to the Camp Nou:

"If I had the option of Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City and Barcelona, I would make exactly that choice too.

"Barca is a beautiful club, it seems to me. He also plays in their way, he is a smart player, technically gifted, he sees the game very well, and when he starts playing with guys like (Lionel) Messi and (Sergio) Busquets, he'll get even better."

President Josep Maria Bartomeu confirmed the transfer via his personal Twitter account and spoke glowingly of Barca's latest recruit:

De Jong will become the second-most expensive Dutch player in history after Virgil van Dijk joined Liverpool for a reported £75 million in January 2018. His transfer fee is also the highest-ever received by an Eredivisie club, almost doubling the €42 million Tottenham Hotspur paid Ajax to sign Davinson Sanchez in August 2017.

Van Persie, 35, is coming to the end of his career at one of his boyhood clubs, Feyenoord, but he spent more than a decade in England with Arsenal and Manchester United, so he'll understand the lure the Premier League may have presented.

De Jong explained his decision to rebuff advances from the likes of Manchester City and Ligue 1 side PSG, per ESPN UK:

The Premier League is often viewed as the most entertaining in the world, largely for its openness and lack of predictability, but La Liga has produced the strongest teams in modern football. Between them, Real Madrid (four) and Barcelona (one) have won the past five UEFA Champions League finals

There's also a tempting platform for De Jong to succeed at the Camp Nou after the likes of Xavi and Andres Iniesta left the club in recent years. Sergio Busquets—31 in July—is also ebbing towards the end of his best playing days.

The Netherlands international is an anchoring midfielder by trade but has also played at centre-back, and Tifo Football analysed his play and what he could bring to a top club:

There aren't many young players today who won't have grown up with some appreciation for Barcelona, while Ajax legend Johan Cruyff also had a major hand in the Blaugrana's development in the late 1980s and early '90s.

De Jong will follow in Van Persie's footsteps by making the step up from the Eredivisie to one of Europe's major leagues, strengthening the ties between two of football's most respected institutions.