Frenkie de Jong produced a midfield masterclass to help the Netherlands seal a place in the knockout stages of Euro 2020 on Thursday night – and a compilation of his performance is doing serious numbers on social media.
The 24-year-old defensive midfielder, who joined Barcelona from Ajax in the 2019 January transfer window, isn’t showing any signs of slowing down after making 65 appearances for club and country throughout the 2020/21 campaign.
He built on his performance against Ukraine in the Group C opener with another impressive outing against Austria, showcasing his often-underrated dribbling ability as well as his outstanding close control, ball-carrying and passing range.
🎥 | Frenkie de Jong vs. Austria
Once again, fascinating performance from one of the best midfielders in the world!
— 🪄🇳🇱 (@FDJChief) June 17, 2021
📊 | Frenkie de Jong vs Austria
76 touches
49 accurate passes (85%)
1 key pass
1 long ball
5 successful dribbles
8 duels won
2 interceptions
3 tacklesMasterclass 🪄🇳🇱 pic.twitter.com/HhOmmNyqIG
— 🪄🇳🇱 (@FDJChief) June 17, 2021
After openly admitting that he had an “ordinary” debut season at Barcelona, following a £65 million move, the defensive midfielder is starting to show his true talent on the biggest of stages. And there’s no doubting that de Jong has world-class potential.
Plenty of fans reacted to his efforts against Ukraine on social media
the De Jong turn is the most efficient dribble move in today’s game after Messi’s body feint
— SR (@TotalMaestro) June 17, 2021
We are incredibly lucky to have Frenkie de Jong at our club. Just so, so good.
— TalkFCB © (@talkfcb_) June 17, 2021
Frenkie de Jong’s ball-carrying is a thing of beauty
— Premier League Panel (@PremLeaguePanel) June 17, 2021
Another astonishing performance from Frenkie De Jong. pic.twitter.com/LnXqKb27yZ
— Barça Universal (@BarcaUniversal) June 17, 2021
What I would do to have Frenkie De Jong at United
💫
— Breezy Montana (@JustTooBreezy) June 17, 2021
Frenkie de Jong – EURO 2020 #NED
One of the world’s best ball carriers from midfield.
10/13 dribbles completed at the Euros so far. pic.twitter.com/2zskzyyfEW
— Edvin (@Edvin_TH) June 18, 2021
De Jong, who completed 49 out of his 58 passes during the Austria game, as well as completing more dribbles than anyone else on the pitch, expressed his delight at not only his performance but that of the team.
“This feels so good, but we also want to win the last game,” he said in his post-match interview.
“I feel very fit, I feel great. We look forward to playing in a packed stadium in Budapest and hopefully, many Dutch fans will come with us and we can create a party.
“It’s a perfect scenario, winning the group with one match to go. The pressure is off for the last match, even though we still want to win it.”
Featured Image Credit: @FDJChief/Twitter