Barcelona 'reject first Manchester United bid for Frenkie de Jong'

Manchester United have reportedly had a £60m bid for midfielder Frenkie de Jong rejected by Barcelona.

Following the departures of Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic, Jesse Lingard and Juan Mata, new head coach Erik ten Hag is looking to bolster his midfield options this summer, with De Jong believed to be one of his primary targets.

The Red Devils are understood to have tabled their first offer for the 25-year-old earlier this week, but The Mirror claims that the bid has been turned down by the Catalan giants.

There is still a level of optimism for United around this potential deal, as the report adds that De Jong is prepared to leave Camp Nou and move to Old Trafford this summer after discovering Barca's desires to offload him and generate funds.

Both United and De Jong are set to have no problems in agreeing personal terms, with only an agreement between both clubs over a transfer fee preventing the deal from reaching an advanced stage.

De Jong has been a first-team regular for Barca since joining the club from Ajax for around £77.4m in the summer of 2019, recording 13 goals and 17 assists in 139 appearances across all competitions.

The potential sale of the Netherlands international could help Barca fund a move for Manchester City's €100m-rated playmaker Bernardo Silva, whose agent Jorge Mendes is understood to have held talks with the club.