Barcelona’s record without Frenkie de Jong is so scary.
Barcelona will be missing Frenkie de Jong for several weeks owing to an ankle injury, with some predicting he may not return until November.
Xavi has already expressed regret for the Dutchman’s absence and stated that it is a major setback for his team.
“It’s a significant loss.” It’s a difficult one because of how we play and the level he’s been at. He’s an important player for us, and he’s been excellent since last season,” he told reporters.
“We have options to bring him in, so hopefully we won’t have to suffer too much.” We’ll see how he feels after the international break in October. That’s all we can say for the time being.”
And it is a significant loss. According to Sport, De Jong has only missed 16 games due to injury in four seasons at Barcelona.
Perhaps more concerning is the fact that when De Jong is out with an injury, Barcelona has won just six of 16 games and lost seven.
Barcelona’s record without Frenkie de Jong is so scary.
The goal difference in those matchups is also not encouraging. Barcelona has only scored 18 goals but has conceded 13 when De Jong is not there.
On the plus side, you can only hope that things will be very different this time. When De Jong is unavailable, Xavi has plenty of other choices on his team.
Ilkay Gundogan, Gavi, Oriol Romeu, Fermin Lopez, and Sergi Roberto are all available to Xavi, who will need to adjust his squad now that De Jong is out.
What role do you believe Xavi should play in De Jong’s starting XI? Please share your ideas in the comments section below!
