Ten Hag: 'De Jong fully focused on Ajax'

Ajax coach Erik ten Hag refused to be drawn on the future of star midfielder Frenkie de Jong after the 21-year-old was linked with a move to Paris Saint-Germain.

De Jong is the latest Ajax youth product to garner attention from across Europe after impressing since making his first-team debut in 2016.

Manchester City, Barcelona and PSG were said to be at the front of the queue for De Jong's signature, with reports in the Netherlands suggesting the Ligue 1 champions had jumped ahead of their rivals.

De Telegraaf claimed representatives of PSG and Ajax had met in Amsterdam to discuss De Jong, with a fee of €75million said to be the agreed price.

The news of PSG's interest is of no major concern to Ten Hag, who insists his squad – including De Jong – are solely focused on staying in touch with Eredivisie leaders PSV by beating PEC Zwolle on Saturday.

 

December 7, 2018

"We know that the top five or six club are watching [De Jong]," he told a media conference.

"But that's been the case for a long time now. The rumours started at the start of the season and it hasn't stopped since.

"The rumours appeared again today and I'm sure it will stay like this for a while, but I think we're handling it well.

"I know this is a cliche but the players are focused on the next game. Frenkie too. The match against PEC is a tough one for us, so we are focused on that."

He added: "If it's all true, Paris Saint-Germain is a very nice club, but there are several beautiful clubs. They are all top clubs.

"Each player must personally make his choice."