Getty Frenkie de Jong says he can improve at Barcelona
Frenkie de Jong has offered a pretty honest assessment of his form in his first season at Barcelona.
The midfielder joined the club from Dutch side Ajax in the summer and has been a regular throughout the season for the Catalan giants.
Yet the Netherlands international has made it clear he’s not too happy with his performances and feels he has a lot more to give in an interview with the AFP.
“I have played some games that were good and others that were average or below average even. I had a bad period, I never played really badly I don’t think, but I know I can do a lot better.”
De Jong has played in all but one of Barcelona’s La Liga games in 2019-20, contributing two goals and two assists to the cause.
De Jong Ready for Restart
Barcelona and De Jong will restart their league campaign on Saturday after almost three months out of action against Real Mallorca at Son Moix.
The midfielder has spoken about the fixture and feels that his team is in better shape than before the competition was suspended because of coronavirus.
“The last round before we stopped we took back first place but we weren’t in our best shape. The league was changing a lot, we weren’t consistent but Madrid weren’t either. I think we have already progressed since the new coach came in. You saw the team was already growing and I think we will be a better team than the one you saw before the suspension.”
Barcelona have been vulnerable in 2019-20 in what has been a difficult season at times. They have already been beaten five times in La Liga and replaced manager Ernesto Valverde with Quique Setien in January.
De Jong to Be Barcelona’s Next Captain?
De Jong may not have had quite the impact at Barcelona that he was expecting following his big-money move from Ajax, but he is still being tipped for big things at the Camp Nou.
Former Netherlands international Wesley Sneijder told Alvise Cagnazzo and Kathryn Batte at the Daily Mail his compatriot could replace Lionel Messi as the club’s leader when the captain finally hangs up his boots.
“De Jong made the best choice because he understood that his football is perfect for Spain and Barcelona. De Ligt chose differently but Frenkie made the perfect decision for his life. De Ligt a different choice but in my opinion De Jong is forward-looking. He did very well to choose Barcelona: it is a club suitable for him, when Messi will stop with football Frenkie will become even more of a leader.”
De Jong only turned 23 in May and clearly has a long and bright future ahead of him at the Camp Nou. His honesty and desire to improve bodes well for the future.
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