Ruud Gullit is wildly enthusiastic about the development of Frenkie de Jong, he says in the Ziggo Sport Football Cafe. The former player of AC Milan, Chelsea and PSV was often critical of the just 26-year-old De Jong in the past, but has seen that the Barcelona playmaker has improved himself considerably this season.
Bas van Veenendaal, presenter of the football talk show, calls Gullit De Jong’s ‘biggest critic’. “No, because I really saw him change. Before it was always dribble, dribble, dribble, but he doesn’t do that anymore. He now plays much faster. It is so annoying when a teammate keeps the ball with him for too long, he has unlearned that”, is the opinion of the simple winner of the Ballon d’Or.
Gullit thinks that De Jong has received the tiki-taka DNA at Barcelona and therefore passes the balls faster. “Sergio Busquets was not fast either, but he always knew before he got the ball where to play it. I think De Jong learned that from him. He’s really gotten better at it. He is now really ready to play the football that Barca love to play.”
Ronald de Boer, also present in the program, does not think that De Jong is as ‘genius’ on the ball as Busquets, but does mention a major advantage of the Arkel-born midfielder over the 34-year-old Spaniard. “Not only is he very useful offensively, but thanks to his speed he can switch quickly and he is also very good defensively. Busquets does not have that, because he cannot run.”