Deco discloses Barcelona are not actively working on key midfielder’s renewal

Barcelona Director of Football Deco
Photo by Pedro Salado/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images

FC Barcelona have successfully completed several important renewals in the last few months. Players like Lamine Yamal and Alejandro Balde have got new contracts which secure their long-term future at the club, while Xavi’s contract was also renewed for another year.

But there is still one case that the Catalans have to complete, and which is being seen as a priority objective at the club, i.e., the renewal of Frenkie de Jong. The Dutchman still has a contract that goes till 2026, but the Catalans want to tie him up for even more years while also readjusting his salary with the economic situation of the club.

In his recent interview with SPORT, Deco disclosed that work was not being done on an urgent basis on this operation for now, and there will be no more renewals this year:

“This year, we are not going to do any renewals. We are not talking about that. We are taking it calmly, without hurry, dealing with agents because we know that there are players who have this season and one or two more, and at the right time, we will talk to the agents. Both parties have to be happy, and we will see in the future.”

Deco also praised De Jong but clarified that De Jong is not the only player who has years left on his contract but the club would still look to extend them:

“Frenkie is a great player, I like him. There are others in a similar situation, like Pedri, Raphinha, Ferran… they are players who have a contract, and we will try to improve little by little without going into individual cases. It will depend on him and also on the situation of the club, as in the case of other players. Of course, De Jong is a great player, and we would like to have good players.”

Frenkie is currently recovering from an ankle injury but has been one of the most trusted midfielders for Xavi. His renewal can prove to be tricky for Barcelona because of the history between the two parties from the time when Alemany tried to push Frenkie to join Manchester United.

But as Alemany is no longer at the club, negotiations can hopefully go smoothly and Frenkie can remain at the club for years to come.

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