Xavi's call to De Jong: "It surprised me quite a bit"

De Jong said Xavi called him before being announced as Netherlands manager, surprising him given the federation's first foreign coach appointment.

Frenkie De Jong will reunite with Xavi Hernández at international level after the Barcelona midfielder missed the last international break while completing his recovery from a World Cup injury. De Jong revealed in an interview with NOS that Xavi called him before his appointment as Netherlands manager was made official. "He called me beforehand, it was nice to know he was considering me," De Jong said. "Since it had been a long time since we had a foreign manager, it surprised me a bit. But I was pleased."

De Jong expressed confidence in Xavi's appointment, citing their successful working relationship at Barcelona. "We worked well together at Barcelona. I know how he thinks about football and that fits well with the national team. He wants to press and attack, he won't change his principles. In how he executes it tactically, he has a lot of variety," De Jong explained. He acknowledged the rebuild will take time.

De Jong returned to action against Real Madrid following his World Cup injury, describing the recovery period as "long and difficult" but expressing confidence in his healing. He confirmed there are no hard feelings with Barcelona over the injury layoff and the decision-making process around surgery.