Will Frenkie de Jong play for Barcelona against Young Boys?

Barcelona have suffered a succession of injuries to key players in recent months but will, at least, be getting one back in time for Tuesday’s visit of Young Boys in the Champions League.

Frenkie de Jong has been sidelined since picking up another ankle injury in April’s dramatic 3-2 loss to Real Madrid. That El Clásico defeat was the Dutchman’s most recent first team involvement but Barca head coach Hansi Flick has revealed that De Jong will be back in the squad against Young Boys.

“It’s great news that he can return to the team, even if it’s only for five or 10 minutes. It’s something important for us,” Flick said of De Jong. “He will be there and if he gets the chance, he will be able to play.”

De Jong’s return comes as young midfielder Marc Bernal was ruled out for the remainder of 2024/25 with a knee injury. He joins the likes of Dani Olmo, Gavi and Marc-Andre Ter Stegen on Barcelona’s lengthy injury list.

Frenkie de Jong ends injury silence

Since the season-ending injury ruled De Jong out of the summer’s European Championship with the Netherlands, the midfielder has given few public statements about his rehabilitation.

“Throughout my recovery I have chosen to stay silent” the 27-year-old said recently. “It is not true that the club told me I had to have an operation, and I didn’t want one. Because everyone at the club, the doctors and myself all agreed that surgery was not the best option.”

“It has been very frustrating for a player who lives and breathes football to be out of action for another lengthy period,” he added.

De Jong was one of the most coveted midfielders in world soccer when he arrived in Barcelona from Dutch giants Ajax in 2019. He has struggled to cement a place in the starting XI, largely due to injuries, but he looks well-placed to thrive in the ball-playing style of Hansi Flick. If De Jong can enjoy a run of games in the team he could soon re-establish himself as one of the world’s finest players in his position.