Frenkie De Jong urged to choose Chelsea FC over Man United if given the chance
Gabriel Agbonlahor explains why a move to Chelsea FC would make more sense than a switch to Man United for Frenkie De Jong
Frenkie De Jong (Photo: Vitalii Kliuiev / depositphotos.com)
Gabriel Agbonlahor believes that Frenkie De Jong would be better off signing for Chelsea FC than Manchester United this summer if given the chance.
The Netherlands international has been relentlessly linked with a move to Manchester United from FC Barcelona so far in the transfer window but the switch has not yet materialised.
The 25-year-old continues to make the headlines in one of the summer’s long-running transfer sagas but it remains to be seen whether he will end up leaving Camp Nou or not.
Chelsea FC have also been credited with an interest in landing De Jong this summer as Thomas Tuchel ponders adding to his midfield options ahead of his second full season in charge at the club.
Former Aston Villa star Agbonlahor feels that Manchester United, who are in the Europa League next season following their sixth-placed finish, do not have the same draw in terms of attracting new signings as they did in the past – and he believes that Chelsea FC would be the better option for De Jong should he leave FC Barcelona this summer.
Speaking to talkSPORT, Agbonlahor said: “I still feel like they [Chelsea FC] may still need a midfielder, there’s talk of maybe De Jong, maybe hijacking that move from Manchester United, and I think he’d choose Chelsea over Man United if he had the choice.
“So I still think they need another midfielder and another striker, but the defence will be sorted with this signing.”
Agbonlahor continued: “I’ve been talking about Manchester United not being as much of a pull for a while now and their fans don’t like it. They can’t handle the straight facts.
“De Jong, if he’s leaving Barcelona, he does not want to go to Manchester United. There are quotes that have come out that he would rather Bayern Munich, he would rather Chelsea.
“Because if I’m choosing a team in the Premier League and I’ve got the chance of Chelsea or Manchester United, I’m choosing Chelsea.
“I’m in London, I’ve got Thomas Tuchel who’s won the Champions League recently, you’re playing Champions League football this season, you’ve got a better squad of players.
“Manchester United have got [Cristiano] Ronaldo who doesn’t want to be there, he’s not turned up for pre-season.
“You’ve got players that aren’t performing. You’ve lost top players like [Paul] Pogba. They’ve got problems and it’s going to take them a while to get a chance of winning the Premier League or the Champions League.
“Does De Jong want to go from Barcelona, who will be playing Champions League football, to Manchester United, who aren’t going to be?”
Under their new owners, Chelsea FC have already brought in Raheem Sterling and Kalidou Koulibaly this summer as they aim to assemble a team capable of challenging for the title next term.
The Blues are continuing to be linked with further additions, with the summer transfer window not scheduled to close until 1 September, which is three weeks after the Premier League season has kicked off.