Barcelona's Injury Crisis Deepens as Frenkie De Jong Joins Growing Casualty List
Frenkie de Jong has returned early to Barcelona following an injury concern during his time with the Netherlands national team.
Concerns arose when De Jong was substituted from the Netherlands' 1–1 stalemate against Poland with just seven minutes remaining. The Barcelona star seemed uncomfortable as he left the field and made his way to the substitutes' bench.
After the frustrating draw, head coach Ronald Koeman revealed to reporters that De Jong had experienced an issue during the encounter: "Frenkie informed us he was feeling tightness in his glute muscle, so we chose not to take any chances."
The following day, the Dutch FA announced that De Jong would miss their next fixture against Lithuania and was heading back to Spain.
"Frenkie de Jong has departed from the Netherlands squad," the federation stated on their official social media channels. "The midfielder is not in suitable condition following the Poland match to feature in the World Cup qualifying tie against Lithuania."
Both the Netherlands and Barcelona have yet to reveal the full scope of the injury, though MARCA suggests De Jong may be unavailable for the Catalan club's encounter with Valencia on Sunday, Sept. 14. However, the 28-year-old will first undergo medical examinations to assess the seriousness of his condition.
This setback arrives at an unfortunate moment for Barcelona. Flick is already missing Gavi and Alejandro Balde, who are recovering from knee and hamstring issues respectively. Additionally, Lamine Yamal experienced his own injury worry while representing Spain internationally.
The last thing Flick wants is to lose one of his key players for an extended period, particularly following his team's disappointing 1–1 result against Rayo Vallecano prior to the international window. Furthermore, Barcelona's 2025–26 Champions League debut against Newcastle United is approaching in under two weeks.
The responsibility may fall to Marc Casadó to step in for De Jong if the Dutch midfielder remains unavailable. The 21-year-old showed promise last season before a knee injury sidelined him for the final two months of Barcelona's 2024–25 season.