97% passes, 4/5 duels won: Barcelona star labelled ‘game changer’ for display vs Valladolid | OneFootball

A leading member of the midfield ranks at La Liga giants Barcelona has on Saturday night come in for widespread adulation.

The player in question? Frenkie de Jong.

Dutch international De Jong, for his part, was afforded a rare rest from the off this evening, as Barcelona made the trip to the Estadio José Zorrilla for a La Liga meeting with Real Valladolid.

With his side trailing by a goal to nil at the interval, however, Hansi Flick opted to introduce the former Ajax man to the fray.

And De Jong went on to play a leading role in the Blaugrana’s eventual comeback triumph.

From his berth at the base of midfield, the 27-year-old shone on both sides of the ball, dictating the tempo of proceedings with typical poise and grace.

De Jong, all told, completed 59 of his 61 passes (97%), won four of his five duels (80%), and proved himself exactly the kind of calming presence which his teammates so needed against Valladolid.

The Dutchman, in turn, has since been widely labelled as Barcelona’s ‘game changer’ on Saturday evening.

Conor Laird – GSFN