Looking for culprits in the Frenkie de Jong case

However the saga ends, nothing will be the same with Frenkie de Jong. His first trip to Barcelona he was a teenager, filled with innocence and dreams. The hope of starting a new adventure with his partner. And things went well, and the city he had always dreamed of opened up beneath his feet. The great relationship between Barcelona and Ajax helped too, along with the many millions the Catalans paid for him.

The ingredients were there for the starlet from the Ajax academy to explode at Barcelona. But bit by bit his morale has been worn down and wings clipped. He has lived through the typical cycle at Barcelona. Excitement, hope, disappointment, resignation.

Most painful is seeing how this unquestionable talent and party has been worn down. So often, in informal chats, we’ve come to the conclusion that he needs to cut loose. Stretch himself. He has a knack for showing up unannounced in the box, choosing the moment to break lines while driving forward with the ball. A wonderful physique. But that he has not been able to exploit it consistently is generating more and more frustration. That’s the word. We’ve rarely seen a player so frustrated. 

Nothing is sealed and signed. In fact, it’s possible it never will be. But still, Frenkie’s potential departure is being discussed because he has never created a unanimous belief in the Barça universe over his performances. Though to be fair, few figures have, historically.

We’ve seen good versions of the Dutchman, but almost always too short or insufficient for the Barcelona palate. Nor as a pivot has he displaced Busquets nor earned a regular start as a player who can break forward. A victim of the chaos around him and of letting himself be carried away by boredom that, without being aware of it, has been "cornering" him. He has never stopped showing flashes of class. But there are more and more sceptics that he can exploit all his potential in Barcelona. If he were to stay, Xavi would have to rack his brains to achieve what so far none of his predecessors have been able to.

But, after all that, there will not be an iota left of the innocence of that first day. Something to think about.