Louis van Gaal thinks that Frenkie de Jong is not in good hands with FC Barcelona. Instead, Barca should have signed a Juve player.
Frenkie de Jong could practically choose his new club last summer. FC Barcelona finally won the race and transferred 75 million euros to Ajax Amsterdam for the shooting star.
Things may not be running smoothly for the 22-year-old, but he has immediately earned a regular place with the Spanish champions. Although de Jong has played 36 matches, his compatriot Louis van Gaal believes that switching to the Catalans was the wrong decision.
“I’m convinced that he’s playing because it cost so much,” said former star coach Ziggo Sport. “(Ernesto) Valverde wanted him, but now there’s another coach. The question now is whether he will continue to play. ”
Van Gaal: “De Jong should have gone to Juventus”
Under Quique Setién, too, de Jong was in the starting line-up last time, but according to van Gaal, his position at Barcelona is particularly problematic, as Sergio Busquets has already been cast in the role the talent had previously held: “He is not playing in his position. At Ajax he was the centre of the game, but not at Barca. That’s the big difference.”
A serious contender for de Jong’s role was also Juventus Turin. Cristiano Ronaldo’s club was the loser, but had better luck with his team-mate Matthijs de Ligt. Van Gaal believes that Barcelona and Juve should have signed the opposite player.
“If any club had to sign de Ligt, it was Barcelona,” says the former coach, who has coached FC Bayern and the Dutch national team, among others. “Because of bus squeezes, it seems that de Jong would have preferred to go to Juventus. Barca needs a game guy like de Ligt more than de Jong.