Barcelona star critical of manager’s setup after World Cup exit | OneFootball

Barcelona star Frenkie de Jong has made clear that he was left disappointed with the tactical setup employed by manager Ronald Koeman in the Netherlands’ meeting with Morocco on Tuesday.

This of course comes after the Oranje were sent packing from the 2026 World Cup.

The Netherlands marked their return to action in the early hours of this morning, locking horns with African heavyweights Morocco in a Round-of-32 clash.

The aforementioned De Jong featured from the off in the fixture, from his customary berth in the middle of the park.

As alluded to above, though, en route to an eventual penalty shootout defeat, the Barcelona man was left disappointed with his country’s formation and tactical approach.

Speaking to the media in the aftermath of the Dutch national team’s underwhelming exit from international football’s grandest tournament, De Jong admitted:

“I feel empty inside. We played bad. We played with a numerical disadvantage in midfield. It was really difficult with only two midfielders. I’m disappointed, but that was the coach’s plan and we did our best to follow it. They had more possession of the ball.”

Conor Laird – GSFN