De Jong issues statement after injury blow: ‘Difficult to see people question my commitment to Barcelona’ | OneFootball

Following Barcelona’s confirmation that he has suffered a tear of the medial collateral ligament in his right knee, Frenkie de Jong has released a personal statement on Instagram addressing the speculation surrounding his injury and his commitment to the club.

The 29-year-old midfielder suffered the injury during the World Cup and played through it, further deteriorating the condition of his knee.

Now, it has been confirmed that he has suffered a full MCL tear and although a surgery has been ruled out for now, De Jong could be sidelined for close to five months.

Questions over De Jong

Amidst all this, speculations have been doing the rounds suggesting that the relationship between Barcelona and De Jong has suffered a blow due to how the midfielder and the Netherlands’ medical staff handled the injury.

Out for five months. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

In fact, some reports even suggested that De Jong had been unwilling to push himself for Barcelona during the final phase of the season in order to stay fit for the World Cup, which led to him losing the trust of manager Hansi Flick.

In a detailed statement, De Jong has now dismissed all those claims, insisting that he remains fully committed to Barcelona.

Full statement

De Jong’s full statement is as follows:

“Dear fans,

“Normally, I don’t pay much attention to what is being written about me, the team or the club. But recently, there’s been a lot of speculation about my injury and my situation at Barça.

“It’s difficult for me to see people questioning my relationship and commitment to the club because of false reports.

“Football is everything to me, and I have always given everything I have for FC Barcelona and my country. That is why I want to share what happened.”

The midfielder then went on to explain how after initial assessments he was told by the national team during the World Cup that his injury was a minor one, and he opted to play through the pain.

“During the World Cup, I got injured on my knee. After the first assessments, the doctors told me it was a small injury and that it wouldn’t get worse if I continued playing.

“The only challenge was playing with some pain, but throughout my career I have done that whenever I could contribute to the team, both for my club and my country.”

However, it was only after he returned to Barcelona last week that he learned the severity of the issue.

“In my holiday, I returned to Barcelona for further examinations. These showed that the injury was more serious than initially determined.

“Thankfully, at this stage there is no need for surgery, and I am now fully focused on my recovery and returning to the pitch as soon as possible.

“Every day, I work to be in the best possible shape. I take my profession, my body and my responsibility to the team extremely seriously. But sometimes there are things you cannot control, and this injury is one of them.”

Reiterating his commitment to club and country, De Jong added:

“Playing for Barça and Oranje is something I feel incredibly proud of, and my commitment to both will never change. I will continue to give everything for this badge, for my teammates and for our fans.

“There are still many moments to create and goals we want to achieve together. Thank you for all your support. I can’t wait to be back.”

“Visca Barça Sempre,” he concluded.