Barca beat City, PSG to €75M signing of Ajax prodigy De Jong
Barcelona won the race to Frenkie de Jong's signature.
The La Liga champions announced Wednesday that they have agreed to a €75-million deal with Ajax for the touted 21-year-old midfielder, who will join the Blaugrana in July. The fee could rise another €11 million through undisclosed variables.
What you've all been waiting for... pic.twitter.com/gDE1mujMLF
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) January 23, 2019
Barcelona's official announcement caps a winding transfer saga surrounding the Netherlands midfielder, who was also reportedly a target of Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain.
A gifted dribbler proficient at dictating play from deep, De Jong has four goals in the Eredivisie this season. He can operate in any central midfield position and has also featured in rare stints for Ajax as a center-back. He's expected to compose part of a drastically remodeled Barcelona midfield next season after the club also reportedly struck a deal worth €10 million per season with impending Paris Saint-Germain free agent Adrien Rabiot.
Following confirmation of his pending summer exit, Ajax complemented the news with a video package detailing some of the youngster's highly sought-after talents.
Esto es Frenkie de Jong... 😍#FrenkieFuturo pic.twitter.com/L8qGei6Bp5
— AFC Ajax (@AFCAjax) January 23, 2019
De Jong also adds to a historic Dutch contingent at the Camp Nou. The 21-year-old midfielder will be the 20th player from the northwestern European nation to suit up for the Catalan club, following the likes of Johan and Jordi Cruyff, Ronald Koeman, Philip Cocu, and Patrick Kluivert, to name a few.