Frenkie de Jong talks Messi, Busquets, Xavi, Koeman, and his Barcelona dream

Frenkie de Jong is currently in his third season with Barcelona. The Dutchman arrived at Camp Nou from AFC Ajax in a massive deal worth €86 million but has yet to live up to the expectations.

There have been glimpses of his exceptional quality throughout his time with Barça, but the 24-year-old has been unable to display it consistently enough while some of his performances in the big games have also raised some questions.

Nevertheless, the Netherlands international remains an integral member of the first-team setup under Xavi Hernandez, despite all the speculations regarding his future.

Living the Barcelona dream

Speaking in an interview with The Guardian, de Jong insisted that he is very happy at Barcelona as he is living his dream, although he did add that he wished to win more trophies than he has so far. 

“I’m very happy I’m at Barcelona: from a young age I’ve wanted to be here, so in that way it has been a dream come true,” he said.

“But I would have liked to win more trophies than we did in my first two years. I expected more in that sense, let’s put it that way. But other than that, I’m very happy here and hopefully for many more years.”

Sergio Busquets and the team atmosphere

De Jong also spoke about the support he has got from his teammates, recalling a particular anecdote involving captain Sergio Busquets. When the Dutchman arrived at Barcelona in 2019, many news outlets and pundits believed that the veteran’s place was under threat.

De Jong recalled how, setting all those speculations aside, Busquets helped him get settled in at his new club. “He was like: ‘Great you’re coming and if you need something I’m always there to help,’” the midfielder said.

“And when I arrived in Barcelona, he recommended a restaurant and made a reservation for me and my girlfriend, Mikky. He had also informed the owner that we were coming so that everything was well arranged for us.”

Further elaborating on the camaraderie within the squad, he added: “I never got that feeling ‘a new midfielder is coming which might mean I won’t play. Everyone really wants to help you. It’s like the best are playing and you can only influence that yourself.”

“It’s not like someone else is to blame if you’re not playing. And I get the sense everyone feels that way.”

Xavi and Ronald Koeman

There had been a lot of rumours that de Jong was unhappy with Ronald Koeman getting sacked and would struggle to find a place for himself under Xavi Hernandez. However, that has not been the case, with the 24-year-old being a regular in the starting XI.

The midfielder addressed the differences between the coaching techniques and philosophies between Koeman and Xavi, saying: “Quite a few things are the same, because at Barcelona you always play in a certain style which doesn’t depend on the manager. But every coach has his own details.”

The ex-Ajax star also touched upon how Xavi was helping improve his game, saying: “We’re both midfielders, roughly in the same position, so in that regard, he can teach me a lot.

“Sometimes we meet in his office and he shows me video clips of my games, where he explains how he sees it and what I can do to improve. We watch clips of how you position yourself and what you can do best in certain situations.”

Lionel Messi’s exit

De Jong was also asked about how he and the team had been dealing with the departure of Lionel Messi, who left Barcelona last summer after the club failed to renew his contract.

Speaking of the shock exit, the Netherlands international said: “First of all I thought it wasn’t true. “I was collecting my dad and brother from the airport. Then I got a message: ‘Messi is leaving Barcelona.’ A bit later we got indications it was really happening.

“At first, you just can’t believe it, even though there were rumours throughout the summer. But I never took it into serious consideration so when it happened it was a shock.”

“He was the face of the club, so when he left – after everything he has done for the club – it was a heavy blow for everyone,” he added. “We still miss him. If someone like him is not at the club any more, then things are suddenly very different.”

“If you have such a player in your team, you just try to find him as much as possible – so the game is adjusted to him, which is logical. When he leaves you have to adjust to it as a player and team.”

De Jong also hailed the Argentine legend, claiming that he was the best in all aspects of the game.

“He is the best in pretty much all aspects of football. Whether we did finishing drills, positioning plays or other training games: he was the best. No praise about him is exaggerated. For me, he is the best ever,” he said.