Barcelona’s exhilarating match against Celta Vigo – where they celebrated a 4-3 victory – won’t take away from worries about Frenkie de Jong ability to play as a defensive pivot for the team.
While the Dutchman is still a world-class talent on the ball, he has given us no confidence with his recent performances of concerning and alarming defensive issues that would cripple Hansi Flick’s tactical plan.
It arguably exhibited the same concerns with the Dutchman’s game, demonstrated in Borja Iglesias’ second goal, where he delivered a clear scoring opportunity due to being slow to position himself and miscommunication.
Diario Sport reports that while Frenkie de Jong demonstrated an intrinsic tendency to drift forward or look to receive the ball, he has left a gap that was exploited.
His technical quality and quality of ball mobility were often regarded as elite; however, his spatial awareness or adjustment to defensive positioning, he has not yet been able to match the demands of the positional profile.
Flick continues to publicly support Frenkie de Jong, even going as far as to endorse the club’s attempts to renew De Jong’s contract.
Negotiations are in motion for a renewal between Barcelona and De Jong’s agent, possibly dependent on a reduction of salary.
De Jong has a good commitment to Barcelona, and there is no doubt he has presence in the dressing room.
However, if he is going to stake his claim as the pivot under Flick, these defensive shortcomings have considerable maturity to overcome quickly.
Barcelona are looking to be competitive at the top of the game, and the room for error is fine.
De Jong’s ability on the ball is unquestionable, but unless he finds the defence in his game, the club will have a dilemma—either play him and risk structural issues or turn to the transfer market for an alternative.
At this point, the decision ultimately (for now) rests with the Dutch ace to show he can be the finished article that Flick needs him to evolve into.
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