Barcelona top target rejects any potential move to the Camp Nou this season

Barcelona have been given a massive blow in the race to sign Andres Iniesta’s replacement, with their top target refusing a move to the Camp Nou.

The supreme maestro Andres Iniesta will always be remembered for his incredible part in one of international football’s greatest teams and for his role in making Barcelona the modern day giant that it is. He combined with the likes of Xavi Hernandez, Lionel Messi, David Villa and many others have been crucial to the La Liga giant’s dominance over the Spanish league in recent times.

Filling that gap on the other hand, could be a task too much for Barcelona, despite the Catalan giants bringing in Philippe Coutinho and Arthur Melo to ease the loss.  However, that said manager Ernesto Valverde is certainly not happy and has decided to splurge a little further, targeting the likes of Adrien Rabiot, Marco Verratti, Paul Pogba, Frenkie De Jong and many others as potential choices.

However, their move for Ajax star Frenkie De Jong has come to a screeching halt despite reports that the Catalan giants have moved closer in negotiations. But with the Eredivisie giants doing well in the Champions League qualification rounds, any potential move has been denied with the 21-year-old star interested in testing himself at the highest level of football.

And with Ajax qualifying for the Champions League group stages with a 3-1 win over Dynamo Kyiv over two legs, De Jong has confirmed his future after months of speculation. In an interview after Ajax’s win, the 21-year-old went on to say “Maybe someday I’ll join Barcelona, but not this season. I’m staying at Ajax. I think it will be a good year.

I’d love to play with Ajax against Barcelona. Our squad is good and we deserved to reach the group stage.  Now we’re about to find out what we’re capable of in the Champions League. It will be my first time [facing those big opponents], but I hope to draw a group with perspective to march on.”

Frenkie de Jong vs Dynamo Kyiv

65 passes
90% pass accuracy
3 dribbles won
3 tackles won
1 interception
4 clearances
1 blocked shot
7/10 duels won
Composed & responsable. Much better than in the first match. pic.twitter.com/qvq4fW7mFj
— FootballTalentScout (@FTalentScout) August 28, 2018

But with earlier reports that Ajax wasn’t going to sell, Barcelona turned their eyes towards Paul Pogba amid rumours that the World Cup winner was very interested in a move. However, that too hasn’t gone to plan with Manchester United rejecting their only offer so far, which has made Barcelona go after RB Leipzig’s Kevin Kampl and PSG’s Adrien Rabiot.