This is not the Ajax version of De Jong, this is better
The Dutchman has hit a rich vein of goalscoring form
Frenkie de Jong has found his natural habitat under Ronald Koeman. In his first season everybody expected the De Jong they had heard so much about at Ajax, who took the team to the semi-finals of the Champions League and ran the game. Koeman brought that out of him for Holland but at Barcelona it didn’t happen. It’s not easy to jump into one of the biggest clubs in the world.
Time passed and Koeman arrived at Barcelona. Many expected the Ajax De Jong after that again, but it did not come. And the player, more self-critical than anyone, was not satisfied.
Then something clicked. Koeman binned the double pivot and moved him forward with Pedri ahead of Busquets. He has a lot of freedom and the physique to get up and down. And the goals have flowed. He has five in total this season, most recently against Rayo Vallecano in the Copa.
De Jong tears up and down and gets in the box at the right time. Last season at Barca he got two goals and four assists in 42 games. At Jax he netted four in the 18-19 season in 52. This season he has five in 27 and more to come.
He is two goals away from equalling his best record, when he got six in the 16-17 campaign in the second division, then netted one in the top flight.
With Holland he has one goal, the first of Koeman’s reign there. We wanted to see the Ajax De Jong, the Holland De Jong, but the Barca De Jong is the best.
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