"We shouldn't even participate in the World Cup": concern over De Jong and Depay in the Netherlands

Bad news surround the national teams in the lead-up to the 2022 Qatar World Cup. The 'FIFA' virus seems to be at its peak as the injuries of Frenkie de Jong and Memphis Depay, which jeopardize their presence in the biggest football event, have been confirmed. In response to this, one of the Netherlands national team's veterans dared to comment on their necessary starting positions.

"I think we can all agree that without Frenkie de Jong and Memphis, we shouldn't even participate in the World Cup," said former player of Real Madrid, Tottenham, and Betis, Rafael Van der Vaart, regarding what happened to the Barcelona players.

For the historic player of the Netherlands national team, their presence is more than essential in the course of the matches. This became public last Thursday when both Memphis and Frenkie de Jong were injured in the Nations League match against Poland.

De Jong's case involved a hamstring injury, which would keep him out for weeks. As for the midfielder, there was an overload, and he also left the concentration to start the recovery process at the club. All this happened last Sunday against Belgium in the 1-0 victory that sealed their place in the Final Four.

Barcelona confirms De Jong and Depay's injuries

For the knowledge of fans and the public, Barcelona confirmed the injuries of the Dutch players: "The midfielder Frenkie de Jong has a strain in the semitendinosus muscle of the left thigh. He is unavailable and his evolution will determine his availability. On the other hand, Memphis suffers an injury to the hamstring of the left thigh. He is unavailable and his evolution will determine his availability," the statement reads.

"Both were concentrated these days with the Netherlands national team, which plays matches corresponding to the Nations League," they concluded.

Problems for Barcelona?

In addition to the recent injury of Uruguayan Ronald Araújo, two new headaches are added to the 'culé' team. Although it is true that Depay's relevance is lower compared to last season, there will be a lack of variation for the Polish player in case of injury or to avoid an excess of matches.

As for De Jong, he is not an undisputed starter either, although he has played in every match this season. For this reason, he could be weakened in certain areas in the upcoming matches and have to rely on youth academy players to cover spaces.

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