Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong just made a massive call, one that’s got Hansi Flick and the entire club on edge: he’s decided against surgery for his knee, even though the medical staff recommended it. Instead, the Dutch midfielder is sticking with conservative treatment after the knee injury he picked up during the FIFA World Cup. This means Barcelona is facing an anxious wait with no idea when one of their most influential midfielders will actually be back on the pitch.
The Risky Bet on Conservative Treatment
This whole saga started at the World Cup, where De Jong injured his knee during a training session with the Netherlands. Despite the setback, the guy somehow played in three more matches! But further examinations later revealed the full extent of the damage: a complete rupture of the medial collateral ligament (MCL) in his right knee. What looked manageable at first became a huge problem for Barcelona. More than three weeks have passed since the Netherlands were eliminated, and the rehab hasn’t gone as well as the club hoped. That’s why Barcelona’s medical staff advised surgery, calling it the “strongest long-term solution.” But De Jong, at 29 years old, believes there’s still a shot to recover without going under the knife and has opted to postpone an operation.
The Next Three Weeks Are Everything
Now, every Barcelona fan is looking at the calendar. The next stage of De Jong’s recovery is absolutely decisive. He’s set to have another medical assessment in about three weeks. Doctors will then evaluate if his rehabilitation program has actually produced enough progress. If his knee responds well, he could keep recovering without surgery. But if the injury doesn’t improve as expected, an operation is likely to become unavoidable. That would be a huge blow for Barcelona, potentially sidelining De Jong for five to six months. In that scenario, we wouldn’t see him back on the field until around January 2027, forcing Flick to kick off the season without one of his most experienced midfielders.
So, for now, it’s a waiting game. Every Barcelona fan will be holding their breath for that next medical assessment in about three weeks. It’s either a path to recovery without the knife or a brutal five-to-six-month sidelining until January 2027. Talk about high stakes for Flick’s early campaign!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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