De Jong’s return boosts Dutch Nations League hopes

The return of midfielder Frenkie de Jong for the first time in 14 months has come as a major boost for the Netherlands and given coach Ronald Koeman better options after qualifying for the Nations League quarter-finals.
There was widespread praise for De Jong’s performance in Saturday’s 4-0 home win over Hungary which ensured a top-two finish in Group A3 and progress to the last eight.
“You saw his qualities in a number of moments”, said Koeman as De Jong made his long-awaited return. “He helped us to create a lot more chances.”
De Jong last played against Ireland in Dublin in a European Championship qualifier in September last year before an ankle injury ruled him out for six months, including Euro 2024 in Germany.
He had missed the last 18 Dutch internationals and only recently returned for his LaLiga club Barcelona.
The 27-year-old De Jong showed his class in the first half with his passing game and control of the midfield before being substituted in the 68th minute.
“You can see from everything he did that he is a great player. Maybe he is not yet at his best, but he reads the game very quickly. You can play football with him so easily,” said former Dutch international Rafael van der Vaart, a pundit on Dutch NOS television.
De Jong told reporters, however, that he was still well short of his best.
“I still need some time to really get into top form”, said De Jong. “After an injury, I usually felt I would get back into form quickly, now after this injury that is really different.”
There were two heavy tackles in Saturday’s match which would have left Dutch supporters anxious.
“It’s not unstable, but it is still sensitive at certain moments,” De Jong said of his ankle. “You have to regain your confidence completely. That only comes from playing matches, and then hopefully the pain will go away by itself.”

(Writing by Mark Gleeson in Cape Town; Editing by Ed Osmond)