ARJEN ROBBEN

Netherlands international Frenkie de Jong has insisted that Barcelona did not play well during the recent friendly against Arsenal. The Blaugrana found themselves 1-0 behind after the first period of the Joan Gamper trophy but they managed to seal a comeback win after an own goal from Ainsley Maitland-Niles and a late strike from Luis Suarez.

Speaking after the game, De Jong said that the team did not produce the best performance on the night and he did not deserve the MVP award after participating through the opening half of the encounter, he told: “The presentation of the squad and the support from the fans in my debut at Camp Nou was very impressive. We did not play a good match. I believe we must have a better rhythm when circulating the ball and do a better job pressing after losing it. There are differences

In both clubs we take care of the ball but the rest is very different. I did not deserve [the Gamper MVP award].”

The Spanish champions commanded the better possession during the game while creating three times more chances than the Gunners. However, the Blaugrana could not find the net regularly due to some last-ditch defending from the Gunners as well as lashed attempts on goal, but there are positives from the fact that a number of new players got the chance to make an impression on the club’s faithful.

Elsewhere, Barcelona seem to have completed most of the transfer business for the summer and aside from De Jong, Neto, Antoine Griezmann and Junior Firpo have been among the high-profile recruits. There has been the speculation that Neymar could be re-signed from Paris Saint-Germain this summer, but so far, the Catalan giants have not made any approach for the Brazil international.