Barcelona fear star midfielder will leave the club on a free transfer in 2026 | OneFootball

When Barcelona signed Frenkie de Jong back in 2019, very few could have thought that the Dutchman would become a liability six years down the line.

But fast forward to 2025, de Jong has indeed become a liability for Barcelona. The former Ajax starlet offers very little output on the pitch but commands one of the highest salaries in the team.

De Jong has already fallen behind the likes of Marc Casado, Pedri and Gavi in the pecking order. His situation is unlikely to improve anytime soon either.

No advances on renewal front

Keeping in mind de Jong’s struggles at Barça, the club’s idea was to renew the contract of the Dutch international by significantly lowering his salary, but the extending the length of his stay.

However, according to Diario SPORT, Barcelona have made no advances whatsoever as far as the talks with de Jong are concerned.

Will Frenkie de Jong run down his contract in Barcelona? (Photo by Rafa Babot/Getty Images)

It appears neither the midfielder nor his agents have shown any intention to renew with Barcelona.

It must be noted that the midfielder shares a fractured relationship with the board ever since the club tried to force him out of Barcelona a few years ago.

De Jong has had a certain amount of resentment with the Barcelona board ever since. And keeping that in mind, Barça fear the worst when it comes to the future of the midfielder.

Indeed, Barça fear that de Jong’s idea is to remain at Barcelona until the end of his contract, which expires in 2026 and then leave as a free agent.

This will cause maximum damage to Barcelona’s finances, considering the fact that the Dutchman is one of the highest-paid players not just at the club but also in La Liga.

Barcelona, in fact, were counting on the sale of de Jong to fund the move for ‘dream target’ Jamal Musiala next summer. But until de Jong leaves, the club can’t do much in the market.