Frenkie De Jong will miss Euro 2024, owing to an ankle injury. The Barcelona midfielder played through the pain when he wasn’t 100% fit, which aggravated the issue, and he has now been ruled out of the tournament altogether.
Ronald Koeman, current manager of the Netherlands and former Barcelona manager, was quick to point out De Jong’s history with the ankle injury this season, and blamed the club for playing him through it.
Frenkie de Jong ruled out of Euro 2024 with ankle injury
🚨 BREAKING: Frenkie de Jong will miss Euro 2024 as he returns to Barcelona due to physical conditions.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 10, 2024
Frenkie can’t force after his injury as there is danger to make it even more serious ❌🇳🇱
De Jong, sad as he wanted to help Netherlands… but only way was to leave the team. pic.twitter.com/9CKe5cnwWp
The 27-year-old was named in the Netherlands’ 26-man squad in spite of not playing since the game against Real Madrid in April. Now, he has been ruled out altogether, and Ian Maatsen has been called up in his place, after a brilliant second half of the season with Borussia Dortmund.
The Netherlands could be without Teun Koopmeiners as well, with the midfielder suffering a knock in their warm-up game against Iceland. The team is currently running scans and will evaluate the situation before arriving at a conclusion.
Frenkie De Jong is a key player for the Netherlands, and his absence could be a huge blow for the team heading into the Euro finals. However, there are several other players capable of replacing him now that the team needs others to step up.