De Jong's Injury Worries Xavi as Barcelona Adjusts

Frenkie de Jong’s season has not even started, and already it feels like it’s slipping away from him.

The Barcelona midfielder returned from the FIFA World Cup carrying what was initially described as a minor problem. He played through the pain, pushed his body to stay on the pitch, and paid for it later. By the time he landed back in Catalonia, the injury had flared up badly and his condition was far worse than first thought.

Now he has been ruled out for the opening months of the new campaign, with no clear date circled for his return.

Xavi’s new job, old concern

The situation has set off alarm bells not only at Barcelona but also in the Netherlands. SPORT report that Xavi Hernandez, club legend and now freshly appointed coach of the Dutch national team, is deeply worried about De Jong’s slow recovery.

Xavi has taken over the Oranje from another Barça icon, Ronald Koeman, and naturally wants one of his key midfielders available as soon as possible. Instead, he finds himself planning his first squad without the player who should be at the heart of his project.

De Jong is still struggling with a right knee ligament injury and is being treated conservatively. Rest, rehab, patience. So far, it has not delivered the improvement the medical staff expected. If that stalemate continues, the option everyone wants to avoid will move to the front of the table: surgery.

Go under the knife, and De Jong faces a much longer spell out. For Xavi, who is due to make his debut on the Dutch bench in late September, the chances of having the midfielder available for that first international window are close to zero.

A race against time – and against competition

On a personal level, the scenario is brutal for De Jong. He can only watch from the stands as his grip on a starting place at Barcelona loosens.

The club have already brought in Rodri to occupy his role in the side. Every minute the new man plays is another audition, another step towards making that position his own. When De Jong finally does return, he will not walk straight back into the XI. He will have to fight for it.

Yet the Dutchman remains convinced that the conservative route is the right one. He believes he can avoid surgery, that rest and careful management will be enough to solve the problem and allow him to rejoin both Barça and the national team.

The club can only hope he is right. A late decision to operate would not just wipe out most of his season; it would also kill any realistic chance of a winter transfer, locking player and club into a campaign shaped by an injury that was once called “minor.”