Manchester United and Chelsea target Frenkie de Jong pigeonholed in the US tour: Third substitute appearance as a centre-back
The Dutchman had to fill in as a central defender against Juventus and was somewhat unfocused in the early stages during his third straight substitute appearance in three games in the US pre-season tour
These last few weeks have been tough for Frenkie de Jong. The Dutch player has been put on sale, and Xavi's intentions are also clear as the midfielder has not played a single minute in midfield in the three friendlies played so far in North America. Against Juventus in Dallas, he came on again at half-time and played in the center of the back four.
During the break, the coach of Terrassa spoke with the former Ajax player. He gave him instructions and took his time to ensure Frenkie had certain movements down, but as a central defender. Waiting for Koundé and Azpilicueta and with Ronald Araujo out of the squad (and Piqué not at 100%), De Jong was once again forced to defend. First alongside Christensen, and then Piqué.
At the beginning he appeared to be very rusty and his touches were clumpsy. At the start of the second half, De Jong made a poor clearance gifting the ball to the opposition that eventually lead to Kean equalizing (2-2). Shortly after, the former Ajax player lost the ball leading to a clear chance that drew a save from Iñaki Peña. His game did get better with time, and was much more composed once Geri was introduced. With a more positional game, the Dutchman suffered much less and showed better control over the ball.
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