MX23RW : Monday, November 25 07:49:03| >> :120:32247:32247:

Ronald Koeman: 'Frenkie de Jong playing out of position at Barcelona'

Netherlands manager Ronald Koeman suggests that Frenkie de Jong's underwhelming form for Barcelona is due to him being played out of position at Camp Nou.

Netherlands manager Ronald Koeman has expressed his belief that Barcelona are playing Frenkie de Jong out of his best position.

The Dutch midfielder joined Barca from Ajax last summer but has so far struggled to replicate his 2018-19 form at Camp Nou, despite making 37 appearances across all competitions for the Spanish champions.

De Jong featured mainly as a holding midfielder during his time at Ajax but, with Sergio Busquets occupying that position at Barcelona, Koeman admitted that the 22-year-old had been forced out of his favoured role.

"It's important that he's playing games, even if they might not be in his preferred position," Koeman told Marca.

"With the national team, he players deeper but we play with two holding midfielders and Barcelona only play with one and two central midfielders, or sometimes with four central midfielders.

"The position he is playing now is different to the national team and Ajax. He's learning to play further forward like this, it's not all bad, but it's not his best position. For me, I think he performs better playing deeper."

De Jong has scored only two goals and created four more in his 37 games for Barca.

ID:394263: cacheID:394263:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2273:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Netherlands manager Ronald Koeman on September 6, 2019
Read Next:
Koeman reveals Barcelona exit clause delayed until 2021
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Barcelona14111242142834
2Real Madrid1393128111730
3Atletico MadridAtletico148512181329
4Villarreal137422521425
5Athletic Bilbao146532013723
6Osasuna146441922-322
7GironaGirona146352018221
8Mallorca146351312121
9Real BetisBetis145541616020
10Real Sociedad145361111018
11Celta Vigo145362224-218
12Sevilla145361318-518
13Rayo Vallecano134451314-116
14Leganes143561319-614
15Getafe142751011-113
16AlavesAlaves144191524-913
17Las PalmasLas Palmas143381825-712
18Valencia122461219-710
19Espanyol133191226-1410
20Real ValladolidValladolid142391027-179


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!