Barcelona will only 'sacrifice' Frenkie de Jong if they can sign Robert Lewandowski or 27-year-old Premier League star - Reports
Barcelona will only sell Frenkie de Jong if they are able to bring in Robert Lewandowski or Bernardo Silva in the summer, according to Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo.
De Jong is one of Europe's most promising young midfielders at the moment. The Dutch international is a key part of the Blaugrana first team under manager Xavi Hernandez. The 25-year-old has made 46 appearances for them this season, contributing four goals and five assists.
Despite De Jong being an integral player in the team, Barcelona could be willing to offload him at the right price this summer. His sale could bring valuable money into the club's coffers as they look to balance their books.
Barcelona, though, will only sell De Jong if they are able to bring in Robert Lewandowski or Bernardo Silva . Fortunately for the La Liga giants, both Bayern Munich and Manchester City have shown interest in signing De Jong.
Lewandowski has one year remaining in his contract with Bayern. According to The Athletic, Lewandowski is not going to renew his contract. The Blaugrana could, therefore, use De Jong as a bargaining chip to land Lewandowski this summer. The 33-year-old forward's willingness to leave Bayern could see the Bavarian giants sell him to Barcelona in exchange for De Jong.
Meanwhile, City manager Pep Guardiola is an admirer of De Jong. According to Mundo Deportivo, the Spanish tactician tried to sign him in 2019. Guardiola sees De Jong as the ideal midfielder to succeed in the Premier League.
According to the Mirror, the Blaugrana are looking to secure a swap deal that would see Silva arrive at the Camp Nou. The deal might not be unrealistic, as Silva had suggested last summer that he wanted to leave City.
Barcelona finished second in La Liga
Despite an underwhelming start to their campaign, Barcelona ended the 2021-22 season in second place in the La Liga standings. Xavi Hernandez's side amassed 73 points to finish 13 short of champions Real Madrid.
Xavi's arrival as manager has galvanised the Blaugrana. The former midfield icon will hope for a much better performance in Europe next season, though.
The Blaugrana exited the Champions League in the group stage and were then knocked out of the Europa League in the quarterfinals by eventual champions Eintracht Frankfurt.