Frenkie de Jong continues to gather detractors at Barcelona due to attitude

Frenkie de Jong's honeymoon period at Barcelona ended some time ago, with the Dutch midfielder being cast as the villain in some corners of the media in Spain. Now that De Jong and Barcelona are almost a year and a half post-divorce, noises of dissatisfaction continue to come from the Blaugrana.

De Jong finally returned from injury after five months with an ankle problem, but apart from 45 minutes against Real Madrid, he has largely flattered to deceive. Doubts over his role and future at the club remain, with Diario AS saying there are those within the club who are frustrated with his attitude on and off the pitch.

De Jong has yet to respond to the contract offer that will be presented in early 2024, and they believe that De Jong is not making the same commitment as others in his position, such as Fermin Lopez, Marc Casado or Gavi. In Hansi Flick's aggressive pressing system, De Jong has so far been too passive and in their view not aggressive enough, despite the German's confidence in De Jong.

It feels like De Jong's departure is more likely than a new contract at this point, as it's difficult to see how he can cement a starting role in the team at the moment. He's clearly still getting up to speed after injury, and that could change things, but at the moment he's performing below the level of Pedri and Casado, with Gavi still needing to do his best as well.