‘I am very happy’: Frenkie de Jong on Barcelona, Xavi and his thirst for trophies

Shortly after Frenkie de Jong signed for Barcelona, he received a text message. It was Sergio Busquets welcoming him to the club and inviting him to get in touch if he had any questions or wanted any advice. Coming from the Spanish midfielder, it was not only a thoughtful gesture but, for two reasons, a remarkable one.

First, although De Jong’s transfer was announced in January 2019 he was not leaving Ajax until the summer. Also he was reported to have been bought to replace Busquets in the team – maybe not immediately but certainly at some point. The club legend could have been forgiven for feeling uncomfortable about the £65m deal. That point was underlined by a Marca headline after De Jong’s debut in a friendly against Chelsea: “Busquets has a problem called De Jong”.

Busquets clearly did not see it that way. “He was like: ‘Great you’re coming and if you need something I’m always there to help,’” De Jong recalls. “And when I arrived in Barcelona, he recommended a restaurant and made a reservation for me and my girlfriend, Mikky. He had also informed the owner that we were coming, so that everything was well arranged for us.”

The anecdote symbolises the atmosphere at Barcelona, according to De Jong, where rivalry is not an issue despite the high stakes for every player. Three years later Busquets and De Jong are regular midfielder partners in a team whose fortunes have improved under Xavi Hernández and who hope to retain their grip on fourth place before the weekend’s fixtures when they visit Valencia on Sunday.

“I never got that feeling ‘A new midfielder is coming which might mean I won’t play,’” a cheerful De Jong says via Zoom before training. “No, everyone really wants to help you. It’s like the best are playing