Frenkie de Jong missed a golden opportunity in his first start in 7 months

Frenkie de Jong was the big change in the starting eleven for FC Barcelona against Red Star Belgrade. Hansi Flick opted to give the Dutchman a starting role, who had not started for the Blaugrana for more than half a year, to give a rest to Dani Olmo who has also just recovered from an injury and who started the derby against Espanyol on the field.

The Barça '21', whose last match as a starter was the Clásico where he suffered a sprained ankle on April 21, came onto the pitch at the Rajko Mitic with the captain's armband on his arm and was in charge of organizing Barça's play in the first minutes. However, he was declining as the match went on and the coach decided to substitute him in the 68th minute to bring in Gavi who brought more grit and impetus to the midfield.

A missed opportunity for De Jong?

The impression Frenkie left behind was that he missed a golden opportunity to make a statement and impose himself on his competition in the centre of the field. Pedri and Marc Casadó seem 'untouchable' for Flick, while players like Fermín López and Dani Olmo have been 'pushing the door' hard, so the Dutchman seems to have lost ground in the fight for a place in the midfield with his questionable performance in Serbia.

So far, the footballer played 15 minutes against Young Boys, 10 in Alavés, 30 against Bayern, 45 against Real Madrid in the second half, 35 in the Catalan derby and 68 this Wednesday, only standing out in the Clásico at the Bernabéu.

"He is the captain and he is very important for the team," declared Flick at the end of the match. Now, he must 'push' in order to avoid losing places in the rotation in the centre of the field. The ball is in his court.