Jeremie Frimpong has been left out of the Netherlands squad to face Serbia as the Liverpool defender continues to struggle for regular minutes for both club and country
Jeremie Frimpong of the Netherlands trains with the Dutch national football team at the KNVB Campus
Jeremie Frimpong has been left out of the Netherlands squad for their Nations League clash with Serbia(Image: Photo by Stefan Koops/EYE4IMAGES/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Jeremie Frimpong has been left out of Xavi's Netherlands squad for the evening's Nations League clash with Serbia.
Sunday's game is the second of four in this international break, with the first seeing Liverpool 's Dutch contingent reunite with former manager Jurgen Klopp for a meeting with Germany. That game ended in a 1-1 draw after Felix Nmecha opened the scoring for the opposition before Cody Gakpo levelled things up late on.
This fixture against Serbia will be followed by a clash with Greece and another meeting with Serbia in early October before club football resumes. Frimpong 's involvement, though, is uncertain as he will be forced to watch Sunday's game from the stands.
The defender is the sole Dutch player who has not made the manager's 23-man squad. This comes after he was an unused substitute in the draw with Germany midweek.
Instead, Arsenal right back Jurrien Timber will take Frimpong's place in the squad. His compatriot was sidelined midweek with a minor injury and is now set to make his return.
Frimpong made his senior Netherlands debut all the way back in October 2023, aged 22. Surprisingly, he only has 15 caps to his name, with a single goal and assist. He last featured for his national side in March of this year in a friendly clash with Ecuador, which ended in a 1-1 draw.
The Liverpool man was not included in Ronald Koeman's pre-World Cup training squad, nor did he make the final cut for the tournament. The Netherlands only made it to the Round of 32 before being beaten by Morocco on penalties.
Jeremie Frimpong of Liverpool during the UEFA Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid
Jeremie Frimpong has endured a mixed start to the season with Liverpool(Image: Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Now, under new manager Xavi, it appears Frimpong is yet to make a strong enough impression to cement his place in the squad. This comes after a challenging first 12 months at Liverpool.
Frimpong joined the Reds from Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen, where he enjoyed a successful four years following his move from Celtic. Last season, he made 35 appearances across all competitions under former Liverpool head coach Arne Slot.
He scored two goals and registered two assists in that time, although neither of his goals came in the Premier League or Champions League. This term, under Andoni Iraola, he's largely been relegated to the bench, with just five appearances, only three of which have been starts.
Since Ronald Araujo 's emergence before the international break, with the Uruguayan defender on loan from Barcelona, it seems Frimpong has plenty of work to do in order to wrestle back his starting place, especially if Conor Bradley makes his long-awaited return from injury anytime soon.