Flick has full faith in 19-year-old Barcelona gem dubbed the ‘other Frenkie de Jong’ | OneFootball

FC Barcelona’s celebrations after winning the Spanish Super Cup on Sunday night in Saudi Arabia, after beating Real Madrid 3-2 in the final, were a sight to behold.

One of the most heartwarming moments during the celebrations came when senior midfielder Frenkie de Jong called young prospect Tommy Marques to click a picture together with the trophy.

It was a nice touch from De Jong, given that the La Masia gem had gone on record a few months ago naming the Dutchman as one of his idols.

Flick trusts the ‘other Frenkie’

Meanwhile, in the background, Pau Cubarsi, who was watching from close by, joked: “Two Frenkies, two Frenkies!”

As reported by SPORT, within the Barcelona dressing room, the resemblance between De Jong and Tommy has drawn attention beyond footballing reasons, as both are holding midfielders and also share a similar physical appearance.

And, even though the 19-year-old prospect is yet to make his first-team debut for Barça, manager Hansi Flick has full faith in his talent and abilities.

Tommy has now accumulated eight first-team call-ups, five in La Liga, one in the Copa del Rey and two in the Super Cup, but he has yet to make his debut.

https://twitter.com/FCB_Argentine/status/2011078779322466797?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The academy graduate again trained with the first team under Hansi Flick in the first session after winning the Super Cup.

This continuity underlines Flick’s interest in closely monitoring the player, despite the fact that his position appears well covered with De Jong, Eric Garcia, Marc Bernal and Marc Casado all available.

Prior to this, Tommy had become a key figure in Juliano Belletti’s plans for Barça Atletic, forming a settled double pivot alongside Brian Farinas, until injuries began to affect the first-team midfield.

However, since he has become a regular in first-team training sessions and squads, the youngster has only played 44 minutes for Barça Atletic against Ibiza on 4 January in a 4-0 win.

It is a complicated situation, as his previous opportunity for regular minutes also came with Barça Atletic, when he played the full 90 minutes in November against Terrassa in a 1-1 draw.

But Tommy will remain part of the first-team setup, with Flick trusting him and wanting to monitor him closely.