‘Of course, it crossed my mind’: Frenkie de Jong on refusing to leave Barcelona and his World Cup pain | Barcelona

A heat solar bathes the Barcelona coaching floor as Frenkie de Jong arrives to speak. The midfielder’s work is finished for the day and the Netherlands worldwide is in his consolation zone right here, the primary crew’s longest-serving participant, a daily captain and effortlessly fluent in Spanish. It’s a far cry from the day simply over 10 years in the past when he visited the Camp Nou.

In late December 2015 De Jong made the a lot of the Eredivisie’s winter shutdown to take a metropolis break in Barcelona along with his now spouse, Mikky. He was 18 and days from linking up with Ajax, who had signed him 4 months earlier however loaned him again to Willem II, and he managed to get tickets for Barcelona v Actual Betis. It’s an event that caught in his thoughts.

Earlier than the match Barça posed with the 5 trophies they’d gained in 2015 – La Liga, Champions League, Membership World Cup, Tremendous Cup and Copa del Rey – and De Jong witnessed Lionel Messi rating on his five hundredth look for the membership. Come 2019 he was taking part in alongside the Argentina nice.

“I clearly bear in mind sitting there, watching Messi, Neymar and [Luis] Suárez, with Barça successful 4-0,” De Jong says. “At Betis, there was Heiko Westermann, with who I might later play at Ajax and who’s now our assistant coach at Barça. It was a particular journey and really good to expertise it along with my spouse, as now we have been on this journey at Barcelona collectively.”

That journey has spanned nearly seven years and reached a milestone final week when he turned the Dutch participant with probably the most appearances for Barcelona (293). After the match, he was honoured by his compatriot Phillip Cocu, whose document he surpassed. “It means lots to me,” De Jong mentioned. “The Netherlands and Barça have a particular connection.”

By way of trophies, his journey has been gathering tempo. If a single Copa del Rey was a modest return for De Jong’s first three seasons, he has since secured two La Liga titles, one other Copa del Rey and three Spanish Tremendous Cups. Again from a hamstring harm, he’s on the verge of third La Liga title. That will probably be secured if Barcelona win at Osasuna on Saturday and Actual Madrid slip up at Espanyol the following day. In any other case it rolls on to Barcelona v Madrid the next Sunday.

“You’re anticipated to win trophies yearly,” De Jong says, however he knew endurance was wanted after the Covid interval. “Lots of large names left and we had been taking part in with many younger guys. That takes a bit extra time – it wanted a 12 months or two, I feel – after which a number of reinforcements got here in as properly.”

The Champions League and a trophy with the Netherlands stay on his checklist however he says: “I actually take pleasure in day by day that I can come right here. As a result of that’s what I all the time wished: to play at Barcelona.”

It explains why he has been so reluctant to go away. Final October De Jong prolonged his contract to 2029 however a number of years in the past he gave the impression to be on his method out because the membership sought to lift funds. Manchester United and Chelsea had been critically and Barcelona made makes an attempt to facilitate a transfer.

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Since my time, I feel we now have the Dutch squad with probably the most potential. We want to verify we develop into the very best crew

Frenkie de Jong

“After all, it’s crossed your thoughts at instances, like: ‘OK, what ought to I do?’” De Jong says. However he’s clear: “So so long as I’m ok to be a starter right here, to make an influence and Barcelona is on the degree I wish to play at – with the sense that they’ll be competing for the main trophies – then there’s no motive for me to go.”

De Jong confronted common rumours a couple of potential exit, with one leak claiming to element his wage, although he says the figures had been inaccurate. “The press can actually affect how folks see you; that’s one thing I particularly observed throughout that interval. Again then, it was all about my contract, with all types of figures about what I used to be supposedly incomes, whereas that was not true. However then you definitely discover they [the outside world] see you in a different way from that time; they choose you in a different way … It begins to get into folks’s heads.”

De Jong illustrates his level with an instance from watching soccer on TV. “When a participant loses possession however the commentator says nothing, folks don’t actually discover. But when he says: ‘Hmm, that’s already the fourth time he’s misplaced the ball, he’s not taking part in properly right this moment,’ that sticks with folks. Many don’t actually watch a recreation intently, they don’t discover what’s taking place. And so it’s essential how folks report tales, or touch upon a match. I feel it has extra affect than folks realise.

“And in addition to that, in soccer there are pursuits: some journalists have contacts with gamers, or by means of others. There are additionally a number of gamers who’ve PR businesses working for them. And also you simply discover there’s a distinction in how individuals are judged. Generally in soccer folks don’t watch objectively, with out even realising it.”

For De Jong it’s all about soccer. It has been since he joined the academy at Willem II – the membership the place Virgil van Dijk additionally grew up – at about seven years previous. De Jong displays on the pivotal function his grandfather performed then, driving him to coaching. “In any other case I wouldn’t have been in a position to go to Willem II at that age; I couldn’t have taken public transport.”

The 2 developed a particular bond and De Jong has all the time performed with No 21 on his shirt, as a homage to the birthday of his now late grandfather. His two younger sons, Miles and Mason, had been then born on the twenty first. “They had been due earlier, and we didn’t induce labour or something, however it’s actually particular.”

Measured by first-team debut nobody in Barcelona’s squad has given longer service than De Jong, now that Marc-André ter Stegen is on mortgage at Girona. Requested for the highlights, he mentions a number of clásico wins, beginning in 2023. “We beat Actual Madrid within the last minute with [Franck] Kessié’s aim,” he says. “We had been 12 factors clear after that match, which gave us the boldness that we might win the league.”

Final season’s clásico was much more spectacular, Barcelona getting back from a 2-0 deficit to win 4-3 and all however affirm their twenty eighth La Liga triumph. “Then final season there was the cup last [against Madrid] as properly. These are the video games you bear in mind.”

The clásico additionally handed him arguably the hardest second of his profession. On the Bernabéu two years in the past, De Jong sustained a severe ankle harm which sidelined him for greater than 5 months. There have been moments the place worry entered his head concerning whether or not he would return. “It generally crossed my thoughts, like if I felt discomfort once more from something, like going up the steps. You suppose: ‘Oof, perhaps … However it was not like I used to be dwelling on that thought for days.”

Pressured to overlook Euro 2024, he watched the Netherlands’ matches on vacation in Ibiza and from residence earlier than coming to Germany for the quarter-final towards Turkey and visiting the dressing room after a 2-1 win. “There’s pleasure and delight after they do properly however on the similar time it’s actually unhappy you could’t be on the market with them … That was actually powerful.”

It shapes his ideas concerning this summer time’s World Cup. “You’ve got much more want to be there and to get probably the most out of it. Since my time with the Dutch crew, I feel we now have the squad with probably the most potential. However we additionally want to verify we develop into the very best crew.”

De Jong has develop into a pillar of the Barça aspect beneath Hansi Flick, having fun with bond with the coach and serving as his on-pitch lieutenant. De Jong has additionally cemented a constructive relationship with Marcus Rashford, on mortgage from Manchester United.

“A extremely good man,” De Jong says. “Open and type and he’s additionally having a huge impact for us on the pitch. Together with his pace and depth, he actually provides lots to our recreation. And by doing so, he additionally forces the opponent’s defence to drop again a bit, which creates more room for us within the center.”

De Jong believes Barcelona have combine, academy skills mixing with signings. “We have now a really open crew, fairly younger, so there’s a whole lot of vitality,” he says. “We have now a whole lot of potential. It’s about ensuring we unlock that.”