Ronald Koeman was a legendary player for Barcelona during the Dream Team era in the 1990s, scoring the goal at Wembley that brought the Catalan giants their first European Cup.
Know for his attacking prowess as much as for his defensive attributes, he was a real fan favourite amongst those who used to regularly attend matches at Camp Nou.
Ronald Koeman isn’t happy with Barcelona
He didn’t fare so well as first-team manager before Xavi Hernandez was appointed, however, there were various extenuating circumstances that the Dutchman could point to as being mitigating factors as to why he was unable to get the best out of his Barca team.
The Blaugranes are still trying to lift themselves up off the floor like a punch drunk boxer, though the final bell hasn’t sounded yet, no one is throwing in the towel and they’re still hanging in there.
Koeman, for his part, was moved aside at Barca in November 2021, eventually going back into his former position as head coach for the Netherlands national side in January 2023.
The 61-year-old has led the side into the 2024 European Championship, however, he’s issued a stinging broadside to his former employers over their treatment of midfield ace, Frenkie de Jong, who has had to be sent home from the Dutch training camp because of injury.
According to a post on X (formerly Twitter) from CaughtOffside columnist and transfer expert, Fabrizio Romano, Koeman said “He was not gonna be ready in three weeks, unfortunately. Frenkie has a history with this injury so we have to think about his health. The club over there decided to take risks and this is the price we have to pay for it.”
His ire is completely understandable given that de Jong might have been expected to be one of the most influential players in Germany for the Oranje.
The question for Barcelona now, given this apparent setback, is whether de Jong will actually be able to take his place at the heart of the midfield in Hansi Flick’s first pre-season game and then first La Liga game shortly thereafter.