Barcelona star Frenkie de Jong has been ruled out of Euro 2024 in a major blow to The Netherlands' hopes.
De Jong, 27, missed the final month of the season with a nasty-looking ankle injury but was named in Ronald Koeman's squad amid hopes he could return for the Euros. It's not to be, though, and the tournament appears to have come too soon.
According to Voetbal International, Oranje boss Koeman was prepared for De Jong to miss the opening group game if it meant he was available to play a part in the rest of the tournament. Instead, though, the former Ajax star is said to be focused on making sure he's fit for his club's 2024-25 seaso.
The Netherlands will kick off their Euros campaign against Poland in Hamburg on June 16. They then travel to Leipzig for a meeting with one of the pre-tournament favourites in the form of France, followed by a potentially crucial final group game against Austria at Berlin's Olympiastadion.
De Jong was an ever-present for the Dutch team at the last two major international tournaments. He started all four games at Euro 2020 as they fell to the Czech Republic in the round of 16, and barely missed a minute in the run to the quarter-finals of the World Cup in Qatar.
Frenkie de Jong 'keen on Man Utd transfer' following improved form under Ten Hag
Koeman, who also managed De Jong at Camp Nou, has secured back-to-back friendly wins without the star as his team looks to gear up for the Euros. In the last of those games, a 4-0 win over Iceland on Monday, PSV duo Joey Veerman and Jordy Schouten earned midfield starts.
De Jong had returned to club action for April's Clasico against Real Madrid. However, he only managed 45 minutes for Barca in that game and has not featured since.
How big a loss will De Jong be? Have your say in the comments section
De Jong was injured in El Clasico in April (Getty Images)A big-money signing from Ajax in 2019, De Jong has been linked with a Premier League move on more than one occasion. However, former Barca boss Xavi outlined the Dutchman's importance at the tail end of last season.
“He is a fundamental footballer, very important for me, absolutely nothing changes," he said in April. "Frenkie has had the misfortune of having three ankle injuries and it is a shame because he was at a very high level before getting injured."
De Jong's injury will leave Koeman with decisions to make on whether to hand more minutes to Al-Ettifaq's Gini Wijnaldum amid a relatively inexperienced midfield group. Wijnaldum is the only midfielder in the squad with more than 25 senior caps, though the likes of Teun Koopmeiners and Ryan Gravenberch have plenty of experience of top European club football.
DON'T SCRAP REPLAYS!
and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
