Frenkie de Jong's sudden withdrawal from the Netherlands squad has left John van Vliet and Danny Blind asking questions. The Ziggo Sport presenter and analyst suspect FC Barcelona played a part in the decision not to take the midfielder to Germany, after he had appeared fit against Greece on Friday evening.
During Friday's historic 7-0 victory over Greece, De Jong made his Netherlands return but stayed in the dressing room after half-time as a precaution. A day later, the KNVB announced that the midfielder had come away from the match with minor complaints and would not travel to Berlin for Monday's Nations League match against Germany.
Despite that precaution, De Jong showed no sign of a possible injury after Friday's match. "I feel good, I'm feeling better and better. I've had an injury, of course. Unfortunately, it took a while, but that's how it was. And now I'm just getting fitter and fitter," he told Ziggo Sport reporter Sam van Royen.
Van Royen asked whether De Jong would be able to play 90 minutes on Monday, but the midfielder remained cautious. "Yes, we'll have to see. I could say yes now, but if I end up playing 60 minutes... So we'll just have to see over the next few days," said De Jong, giving no reason to think he would miss the international against Germany altogether.
Yet Van Vliet found De Jong's withdrawal a day later remarkable. "This was last night after the match. This isn't someone you looked at and thought: well, we're going to read on Saturday that he's going back home," the presenter observes.
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Blind agrees: "No, so that is quite remarkable. Or he underestimated it a bit himself. Perhaps he thought: I can feel something, but I won't say anything; it'll be fine. And it only became apparent later."
On Barcelona's possible involvement, Blind says: "Or maybe Barcelona did have more to say," prompting an immediate response from Van Vliet: "That's what I think."
Looking back to last summer, Blind continues: "That's possible. The KNVB still have something outstanding, a bit, after last summer. So there has probably been contact from Barcelona. That could well be the case." Blind is referring to the events of last summer, when De Jong played on with a meniscus injury during the World Cup and then needed months to recover.
Van Vliet then asks how contact between clubs and the Netherlands' coaching staff usually works. "Does that happen? Because you've been on that staff and held that position yourself. Do clubs sometimes call beforehand, or even during the series of matches?" Blind explains: "Yes, but it always starts when there really is something wrong, you know. When there are aches and pains. Then it's simply doctor to doctor. And then it goes from the doctor to those in charge, and you can make agreements about playing time."
To Van Vliet, there is more to De Jong's withdrawal. "Hearing him here, I would say at least this: he didn't decide this himself," he says. Blind agrees: "No, I don't think so either. I think they've simply had discussions, and he'll undoubtedly still be feeling something. Nothing major, at any rate, that's for sure."