Barcelona opt to delay Frenkie de Jong’s comeback from five-month injury absence

Earlier this week, Barcelona were boosted by Frenkie de Jong’s return to group training. The Dutch midfielder has been out of action since April with a troubling ankle injury – surgery was recently avoided, meaning that a return is closer than ever.

Despite de Jong’s return to training having come somewhat sooner than recently expected, Barcelona are taking no chances with his recovery, especially given the nature of his ankle injury. According to MD, there are no plans for him to be included in the matchday squads for the matches against Getafe (Wednesday) or Osasuna (next Saturday).

Instead, Barcelona are hoping to have de Jong feature against Young Boys, their second league phase match in the Champions League. However, if that comes too early, he’d be held off until the visit of Alaves five days later.

Barcelona will be desperate for de Jong’s return. The lack of pivot options is glaring, which is why Eric Garcia has been forced to occupy the position recently – he, Marc Casado and Pedri are the only players that Hansi Flick can currently call upon.