Barcelona find silver lining in Frenkie de Jong’s World Cup elimination | OneFootball

Of the 16 FC Barcelona players that participated on the World Cup 2026, only one was eliminated from the group stage, i.e., the center-back Ronald Araujo. However, even he does not deserve any blame for his Uruguay team’s early elimination, as he was unable to play in any of the three group stage games due to a physical problem.

The knock-out rounds of the international tournament have now already started, and another Blaugrana player saw his team eliminated from the Round of 32 today, i.e., the midfielder Frenkie de Jong. The Netherlands faced Morocco in this tie, and, once again, were eliminated after losing a penalty shoot-out.

Previously, the Orange team was looking set to advance after Cody Gakpo scored in the 72nd minute of the game, but an injury time goal from Morocco leveled the scores and took the game to penalties.

The Dutch team was expected to go far in this tournament, but once again fell short. Still, according to SPORT, Frenkie de Jong was able to impress Barcelona with his performances on an individual level, as he remained a key midfielder for Ronald Koeman.

During this competition, the Dutchman once again showcased his characteristic virtues of controlling the game from the midfield, progressing with the ball, and frequently breaking opposition lines with his passes.

However, the best news for Barcelona must have been his performance in this last game against Morocco, as he survived a full highly demanding 120 minutes, despite some recent concerns about his physical situation.

With this elimination, Frenkie de Jong’s World Cup journey comes to an end, and he would now begin his vacations. Hopefully, he would be able to improve his physical level even more before joining Hansi Flick for the preseason training at Barcelona, and continue to remain an important player for the German coach next season.