Barcelona director speaks on star midfielder’s contract: “Future of the club” | OneFootball

Over the past week or so, there has been a lot of chatter surrounding a possible contract extension for Barcelona midfield mainstay Frenkie de Jong.

The 26-year-old has become one of the permanent fixtures in the starting XI for Xavi and is showing is world-class qualities game after game.

From almost being forced out of the club last year to becoming one of the four team captains, the Netherlands international has come a long way during this period.

As such, Barça are looking to renew his contract, which still has two years left, following his long-term extension in 2020.

Deco wants De Jong to stay for many years

Just before Barcelona’s match against Celta Vigo kicked off today, the club’s new sporting director Deco was asked about Frenkie de Jong and a possible contract renewal for him.

In response, the former Portuguese international went on to say that he wants the midfielder to remain at Barça for a long time, terming him as the ‘future of the club’.

“He still has two years left on his contract after this one. We’ll see. He’s the future of the club. We want him to stay with us for many years,” Deco said.

One of Barça’s reasons to try and negotiate a renewal with De Jong is to negotiate a potential salary reduction, like they did with Marc-Andre ter Stegen during the summer.

Initial contacts are understood to have been made already, although the Netherlands international is in no hurry to discuss a new contract.

But, De Jong did insist in a recent media interaction that he is very happy at Barcelona, as he said: “My contract renewal? My agent is taking care of that, but I’m happy here.”

Deco on the Joaos, Xavi’s contract

Deco also spoke about the situation surrounding new signings Joao Felix and Joao Cancelo and a possible permanent transfer for the pair.

With their performances, the pair could command a significant transfer fee next summer, which could become an issue for Barcelona due to their FFP problems.

On the matter, Deco said: “We want to keep them if things go well, there are still several months left. We must respect La Liga rules.”

Barcelona also confirmed the contract extension of Xavi last night and Deco insisted that the manager’s renewal was deserved, saying:

“One of the priorities was to renew Xavi’s contract. He deserved it. We also had to register the players… But Xavi put himself last in this matter.”

Source: Mundo Deportivo