Anwar Ibrahim (Cairo)
Despite the departure of the Argentine legend Lionel Messi from Barcelona, and his move to play for Paris Saint-Germain since last summer, he is still in the hearts of all “Barca” players who believe that he left a huge void in the “Camp Nou” and the dressing room, no one has succeeded in compensating him. Until now.
Among the young stars who were greatly affected by the departure of Messi, Dutchman Frenkie de Jong, who gave an interview to the newspaper “The Guardian”, in which he said: I find it very difficult to accept the idea that I no longer play next to the “flea”.
De Jong told how he lived the announcement of the news of Messi’s departure, and said: I did not believe at first, although there were rumors all summer talking about his departure, but I did not take them seriously, and when these rumors were confirmed, their impact was like a shock to my person.
Although months have passed since Messi’s departure, de Jong and his colleagues in the dressing room are still suffering from his absence and miss him a lot. In the club than in his presence.
In response to a question about the recent criticism leveled at Messi, especially after his performance, which many did not like in the Saint-Germain match against Real Madrid in the first leg of the 16th round of the European Champions League, de Jong strongly defended his former colleague, and said: Messi is the best player in the world. Rather, he is the best of all time, and there is no exaggeration in that, and all the praise he receives is fully deserved.
In response to a question about the rumors that indicated the possibility of De Jong leaving next summer, in order to finance deals for “Super” players, he said in his interview with the English newspaper: I intend to stay here in “Catalonia”, and I am happy to be in Barcelona; Because I have achieved a dream that I have always had since childhood, and I hope to continue here for many years.