"My successor? Frenkie De Jong. Yes, there are differences in terms of position and specific qualities, but Frenkie is a player who connects the lines like I did. He has the guts to play and makes the team function better, I am charmed by him," Netherlands legend Wesley Sneijder has told Voetbalzone.
Despite their age difference — Sneijder is 13 years older — the two have actually played a match together. Back in the 2018/19 season, the duo tagged up in a friendly international match against Peru. Thus, we can say that Wesley knows what he's talking about.
However, he's also right that De Jong plays in a different position, as Frienkie has more defensive duties than Sneijder used to. Despite this, the 24-year-old had a quite successful 2020/21 season, scoring 7 goals and providing 8 assists in 51 matches for Barcelona.
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Xavi names 2 things that make De Jong 'complete player for modern football'
"De Jong is an excellent wildcard, he covers a lot of ground because he has a great physical level, he now has discovered that he can score goals, too," Xavi has told La Vanguardia, as per Mundo Deportivo.
"He's a total player for modern football," Xavi added.
Frenkie de Jong was arguably among the best Barcelona performers last season, scoring 7 goals and getting 7 assists.
The 24-year-old was used in plenty of different positions from the central midfield to the central defence.
Xavi showers Busquets with praise, ranks him as best defensive midfielder in history
"Sergio Busquets is a must in any squad. He dominates the field like … huff," former Barcelona midfielder Xavi has told La Vanguardia.
"He is the best defensive midfielder in history, I would say, and yet at Barcelona, he is judged and criticized. The environment sometimes crushes the players and it cannot be like that. Busquets has suffered it and we have all suffered with him."
Despite a slower start under Ronald Koeman, Busquets went on to have a decent 2020/21 season on the personal level. The 32-year-old made 50 appearances and recorded five assists.
