The intensity of the dispute is escalating between the Spanish club Barcelona and the Dutch player Frenkie de Jong of the team, due to the knee injury the player is suffering from.
The Dutch midfielder insists on not undergoing surgery, while the Catalan club believes that conservative treatment has not achieved the expected improvement and that surgery has become the best option.
Sharp disagreement between Barcelona and De Jong
According to the Spanish newspaper "Sport", more than six weeks have passed since De Jong's participation with the Netherlands national team in the 2026 World Cup ended on June 30, yet the player has not yet agreed to undergo surgery.
The frustration inside Barcelona stems from the end of last season, as club officials believe that managing De Jong's physical condition was greatly affected by the player's desire to reach the World Cup in the best possible shape.
De Jong played his last full match with Barcelona on February 22, before missing 9 matches, then returned to participate in 6 more matches, but he did not regain his regular place in the starting lineup, before missing the team's last two matches in the Spanish league in preparation for joining his national team.
Unlike his situation with Barcelona, De Jong played all matches for the Netherlands national team in the 2026 World Cup as a starter and remained in the lineup until the Dutch team exited the tournament on June 30.
The player later explained that the Dutch national team's medical staff did not properly assess the severity of the problem he was suffering from, but he defended his decision to continue playing, confirming that he did not believe it would expose him to greater risk.
However, Barcelona has major doubts about the way the player's injury was handled throughout that period, as the club wants De Jong to undergo surgery to resolve the issue and begin a recovery program with a clearer timeline.
But De Jong remains hesitant about undergoing the operation and insists on giving conservative treatment an additional chance before making the final decision.
This difference has led to a stalemate between the player and the club, as De Jong believes the critical period for treatment has not yet ended, while Barcelona believes it began much earlier than the player thinks.
