Barcelona splashed € 85 million in 2019, hoping to find a successor to Ivan Rakitic. They competed against Paris Saint-Germain and eventually convinced the Dutch midfielder to participate in a better financial proposal. Six years later, the club and themselves are not exactly happy with the outcome.
Sergio Busquets rose with him and bumped into each other for the preferred zones, but his exit still did not result in the 'Ajax Frenkie' Barcelona hoped for one of them. The midfielder survived various managers (Ernesto Valverde, Ronald Koeman, Quique Setien, Xavi Hernandez and now Hansi Flick), without ever settling. He even received an exit for Manchester United, a transfer movement that as long as it was discussed, De Jong never gave himself the opportunity to materialize. This season he was surpassed by Marc Casado, and his story is still looking for one of those turns that looks so good at colleague midfielder Pedri.
In Barcelona circles it was long said that De Jong did not fit in Barcelona because he could not defend. It was stated that he simply clashed with Busquets. Even given the opportunity to play under Ronald Koeman, a Dutch manager who in theory knew how to get the best out of him, after having spent time with the national team. Although he had a few good months, the performances he did never justify his transfer costs.
After everything, he still has a contract to possibly extend, which would probably see a reduction in wages – a sign of his deterioration of the reputation as much as the finances of the club. Whether the Dutchman agrees is unknown. It was not always about style. Style can change, evolve. The team had several managers. De Jong was supposed to be another midfielder, a prominent one. He had countless opportunities to exchange himself, which so far stays with green shoots and never a flower.
One of the reasons may be that Cules misunderstood the reality of De Jong, who became like Ousmane Dembele – a player who held in Utopia, without any sense of reality. It was the idea of the player, the renewal of the Barcelona-Ajax left that forced an unconditional love. His lack of concentration in defending, however, led managers to bank, regardless of how good his ball skills were. There have of course been good spells, where he saw the role and gave material to the social media compilation artists. However, those spells never lasted longer than a few months.
If the saying hurts, it runs true, and maybe it is sometimes better to let go than to separate. That increasingly fits in with the situation between De Jong and Barcelona. Even when they perform positively, such as the Valencia equal game in the Copa del Rey, or the 1-0 victory against Alaves, it never felt as if the 'Ajax Frenkie' was playing. Of course he reduced the amount of technical errors, but it is a kind of spirit of his promise – soulless.
De Jong succeeds when he can control the game. However, this must happen to someone who plays behind him, who covers the ground that he leaves so smoothly. As he holds the ball, he must feel the need to 'dominate' possession. He is not the type to quickly play combination football. One of the most important criticism of the Dutchman since his arrival is that he delays by refusing playing. Barcelona's philosophy excels in involving several players who pass the ball quickly – not because of it, but because playing speeds and opponents disoriented. Until now, this has proved incompatible with De Jong's football, creating a collision of cultures.
Both parties have since started taking different paths. Both Marc Bernal and Casado, graduates from the Academy, have sometimes preferred De Jong. Both parties must undoubtedly understand that it is best to let it go – so that De Jong may like to play again, while the club no longer considers him essential for their midfield plans. Barcelona certainly does not want any other high-earning player, since the two parties still talk about new circumstances in a possible contract extension.
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