Barcelona legend Xavi believes Ajax’s versatile midfielder Frenkie de Jong can be regarded as the perfect fit for the Catalan giants in terms of his playing style. The Dutchman has caught the attention of a number of elite clubs after his impressive progress in Amsterdam but the Blaugrana are nevertheless said to be leading the race for his services.

Speaking to reporters, Xavi indicated that the Dutchman’s style of play familiarises to that of Sergio Busquets and believes he is the kind of player that Barcelona require in the centre of the park, he said: “I have not seen him play a lot, but he does look like Sergio Busquets in terms of playing style. The Ajax school is a bit like the one in Barcelona.

“We all come from the Dutch school, via Crujff. De Jong is young, but I think he can make a huge contribution now. He is seen as a beastly talent. He is really a player to keep an eye on, a very good player. Arthur, Rabiot and De Jong are the type of players that Barcelona needs. They are players who are technically very gifted, work hard for the team and have a lot of talent. Because that’s what Barcelona is all about.”

Barcelona were heavily tipped to pursue the Dutchman during the backend of the summer transfer window but a deal never materialised with the club coming short of Ajax’s valuation. Since then, the Spanish champions have been touted to make a winter approach for the midfielder but the move appears unlikely to happen with Ajax director Marc Overmars indicating that the club have no intention to offload their prized asset midway through the season.

Since the new season started, De Jong has managed to amass 13 appearances across all competitions while contributing one assist in the process. He also bagged two caps for the Dutch national side during the recent international break where they faced Peru and World Cup holders France.