The last few days have not gone exactly as planned for FC Barcelona. The Catalans saw their winning start to the season come to a disappointing end, as they lost against both Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid. Furthermore, the Blaugranes also saw several of their players getting injured, leaving Hansi Flick with quite a thinned backline.
In such a context, one rare piece of good news for the German coach has been the return of the midfielder Frenkie de Jong. The Dutchman had been injured during the World Cup and missed the preseason and the first phase of the season with that injury.
[He returned to action during the El Clasico](https://barcanewsnetwork.com/hansi-flick-talks-fatigue-luck-injuries-frenkies-return-after-barcelona-1-2-real-madrid/), and now, he will get to reunite with his former coach at Barcelona, Xavi Hernandez, who replaced Ronald Koeman as the head coach of the Dutch national team after the World Cup. Owing to his injury, he was not able to make it to the new coach’s first squad for the September international break, but has now been called up for the next matches for his side.
Having already worked well together, the two have a good relationship. In fact, as [Mundo Deportivo](https://www.mundodeportivo.com/futbol/fc-barcelona/20261031/1004245314/llamada-xavi-jong-me-sorprendio.html) has reported, the midfielder appeared in an interview with NOS, and revealed that the coach had called him even before he was finalized as the Dutch national team coach:
**“He called me beforehand, and it was nice to know he was considering it. As we hadn’t had a foreign national team coach for a long time, I was a little surprised. But I was pleased.”**
The Dutch midfielder also provided hints about the approach the Spanish tactician will take with his new team:
**“We worked well together in Barcelona. I know how he thinks about football, and that fits well with the national team. He wants to press and attack; he won’t change his principles. Tactically, he has plenty of variety in how he implements them.”**
Frenkie was also looking forward to start a new project with his national team:
**“Now we have to start rebuilding, and that’s going to take time.”**
The Barcelona midfielder also opened up about his recent injury:
**“It was a long and difficult period, but I was confident I would recover well… There was much less uncertainty about whether this injury would heal and when it would do so than, for example, with my previous ankle injury.”**
The Dutchman also assured that he and the Blaugrana club have no conflicts despite some reports to this end regarding his preferred recovery method:
**“Everyone knows the situation and how things unfolded, so there are no hard feelings. Of course, we discussed it while deciding whether or not to undergo surgery. Then the decision is made together, and you move on.”**
Although Hansi Flick has several options in midfield, Frenkie de Jong’s return can still prove to be important for the Barcelona coach, especially as the Dutchman is one of the options to play as a center-back tonight against Alaves. Hopefully, he will put in a good performance and will continue to regain fitness with his match.