Nuri Sahin: "Frenkie de Jong has been my weakness since I was at Ajax"

Frenkie de Jong is not having a good time. His performance on the pitch is not up to the level of one of the most expensive signings in the history of the club. It seemed that, as a midfielder, he could have found his place after the match against Mallorca, but his performance does not improve. The fans are far from being happy with the Dutchman's performance and, every time he steps onto the pitch at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, they let him know with a loud whistle.

In this context of unrest and skepticism about the figure of the former Ajax midfielder, Nuri Sahin, Borussia Dortmund coach, has backed the player. He did so in the press conference prior to one of the Champions League matches of the day, the one that faces his club with FC Barcelona. When asked which team is most likely to win, he replied: "Tomorrow there are no favourites. We play at the same level. We are capable of winning the match. Tomorrow we will see, but we have to worry about almost everything about Barcelona. It is not just Lewandowski, there is also Lamine Yamal, Raphinha, De Jong, my favourite player..."

"De Jong is my favourite midfielder"

The statements of the former Turkish footballer are surprising, as he has put the most in-form players of Barça on the same level as Frenkie de Jong, who is having very little weight in Flick's plans. In fact, of the three mentioned, the one who has played the fewest minutes is Lamine, with 1,535. For his part, the Dutchman has 343, almost 5 times less playing time than the Spaniard. However, like the rival coach, Hansi is also a great fan of the midfielder.

Despite the context in which Arkel lives, the Dortmund coach is very clear about it: "He's been a weakness since I saw him playing at Ajax. He's my favourite midfielder. He's been injured and I think Barça must be very happy to have a player like Frenkie de Jong," he said.

He also spoke about Robert Lewandowski, with whom he shared a dressing room for a year, between 2010 and 2011, in the team that Sahin now coaches. "He scores goals and is at a great level. I've never had to defend him, but tomorrow we will do well. In any case, we will never focus on just one player, that would be unfair. I'm happy to see him tomorrow," said the Turk.