Ten Hag determined to make £67m-rated star ‘cornerstone’ of his Man Utd revolution

Erik ten Hag is determined to make Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong the ‘cornerstone’ of his Man Utd revolution, according to reports.

Ajax boss Ten Hag was announced as the new permanent Red Devils manager last week but the Dutchman will not take over until the end of the current season.

Man Utd are currently sixth in the Premier League table, after losing to Arsenal 3-1 over the weekend, with the fourth-placed Gunners now six points ahead of Ralf Rangnick’s men.

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The signings of Raphael Varane, Jadon Sancho and Cristiano Ronaldo in the summer was meant to catapult Man Utd into challenging for the title but they have instead gone backwards this season.

There have been reports of dressing room unrest at times this season and Ten Hag will have a big job on his hands to turn the ship around in the summer.

One priority area for the Man Utd recruitment team this summer is central midfield with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer hoping the club would bring one in last summer.

Former Ajax midfielder De Jong, who has played under Ten Hag, has been linked in recent months and now Spanish publication Sport (via Sport Witness) insist that Man Utd are ‘on the prowl’ for the Dutchman.

Ten Hag thinks is ‘capable of bringing out his best version’ and make De Jong the ‘cornerstone’ of his grand plans for Man Utd.

Bayern Munich are also said to be ‘thinking of him’ this summer and want to be there if Barcelona decide to listen to offers for De Jong, but they are ‘not proactive’ in their interest.

Although Barcelona are not looking to sell De Jong, despite some irregular performances, they will ‘study’ any offers ‘close to €80m (£67m)’.

Speaking before their defeat to Arsenal, Rangnick