De Jong will leave Barcelona, according to Dutch press

FC Barcelona

Frenkie de Jong is still waiting to see how his knee develops and in the coming weeks it will have to be known whether he needs to go under the knife. That possibility would mean missing a significant chunk of the season, right when the Barcelona has signed Rodri to take on a role of maximum weight in midfield.

The situation has been analyzed in the Netherlands by Valentijn Driessen, a journalist at ‘Telegraaf’, who does not see an easy future for the midfielder at the Blaugrana club. His reading is clear: the new sporting context leaves De Jong in a much less secure position than in previous seasons.

Driessen does not see room for both

Driessen recalled the player’s physical problems and directly pointed to Rodri’s arrival as a decisive factor: “He has been injured a lot; they already tried to get rid of him before, and now they bring in Rodri. I don’t think that now that he’s injured they’re trying to sell him — I can’t imagine that — but I do think it’s his last season at the Barça”.

The journalist also does not believe De Jong will maintain for years an undisputed role at the Barça. “He wanted to stay at Barcelona until the end of his career, but that is granted to very few players”, he said, before adding: “He’s not the kind of player you think: he’ll keep being a starter at Barcelona until he’s 35. In short, he won’t spend the end of his career there”.

Another point he addressed was the sporting coexistence with Rodri. Driessen ruled out that both can share the starting spot naturally: “You always have to perform to keep playing. If an excellent player arrives who plays in your position, I can’t imagine that those two can play together”.

For the Dutch journalist, the only way forward would be through a deep transformation in De Jong’s style of play, something he does not see as easy. “It’s possible he could try, but he needs to be more offensive, and that is usually the point of criticism: that he lacks that. He’s never managed it”, he said.

While the player recovers, the club has already moved pieces around his situation. Barcelona’s sporting bet is Rodri, Hansi Flick has taken away the captaincy and De Jong asked to intervene in the club’s media to defend his position, a gesture that reflects the tension that exists.