Who is Frenkie De Jong - The Ajax Star and The New Barca Midfielder

With a perfectly balanced defensive and attacking skill-set Frenkie De Jong is considered to be one the brightest talents out there.

Owing to his sublime footwork the 21 year old Dutch midfielder, who shook the transfer news world with his decision to join Barca, proves to be a reckoning force in the middle, easily finding his way out of tight situations whilst also serving as a great playmaker.

Before breaking the Barcelona Transfer News Headlines - De Jong had a small but eventful history of transfers. He started his career playing for Willem II, where he mainly served as a substitute and was given very little playtime.

At the beginning of the 2015-16 season Willem II was approached by Ajax as they were quite interested in what De Jong had to offer. They offered him a 4 year contract and then loaned him back to Willem II.

After completing his loan period De Jong returned to Ajax in January 2016.

He made a total of 15 appearances in the 2015-16 Jupiler League where he mostly played as a central midfielder. During this time he recorded 3 assists and scored 2 goals.

De Jong made his international debut for the Netherlands U19 team on 10th July 2015 and had a total of 22 appearances for various national youth teams.

During his 2016-17 season with Jong Ajax, De Jong was given the “talent of the season” award.

His season was quite eventful as he made a total of 31 appearances serving as a central defensive midfielder for the team. He scored 6 goals and made 8 assists and was booked twice.

The Dutch wonderkid made his senior debut against Sparta Rotterdam. He made a total of 4 appearances during the season and scored one goal.

After having understood the way Ajax played its game in a more efficient manner, De Jong became an integral part of their playing style and was being considered for many major games.

During the 2017-18 season he made a total of 26 appearances, playing mainly as a central defender owing to his great built and defensive technique.He had a staggering run during the season with 8 recorded assists and just two bookings.

However, towards the end of the season he was injured with a ligament tear and a hairline crack in his calf bone which led to him being ousted for a period of 3 months.

For the 2018-19 season De Jong returned to his natural position of a central midfielder and was on a roll with a very high passing accuracy.

Recognizing the huge potential, European giants FC Barcelona decided to acquire the defensive midfielder in January 2019.

The signing has been completed for a reported fee of 85 million USD, and the Dutch midfielder will soon be seen at the Camp Nou, in the famous Barcelona colours.

Source: barcablog.com