Frenkie de Jong Denounces False Claims by Gerard Romero

Frenkie de Jong has drawn a clear battle line with journalist Gerard Romero, using a club interview to publicly denounce what he calls “false” stories about him.

The Barcelona midfielder, currently sidelined with a knee injury, did not hold back as he addressed months of speculation and pointed directly at Romero as the source of several claims he says are lies.

He was especially incensed by one allegation.

“For example, Gerard Romero. He said, and he started all of this, that I refused to play against Atletico in the Champions League last year. That’s false. It’s false. It’s simply not true,” De Jong told the club’s media.

That accusation, he explained, cuts right to the heart of his identity as a Barça player.

“As I said, my dream is to play for Barca, especially in important Champions League matches. Of course I want to play. I don’t understand how you can say that I refused to play. And obviously, if people get angry and if that’s the only information they have, I understand. That’s why I’m explaining.”

Once he started, he didn’t stop there.

De Jong went on to reject another recurring narrative: that he has a fractured relationship with his coach.

“Then he said that my relationship with the coach is very bad, which is completely false. I have a very good relationship with the coach. I talk to him a lot. You can ask him about all of this. It’s completely false.”

The midfielder also moved to shut down talk of tension with the club’s hierarchy and suggestions he has been internally sanctioned.

“They’ve also said that my relationship with the club is bad, which is also not true, because I talk a lot with people at the club, with the directors and so on. Then they said I’m being punished. That was Gerard Romero again, and I want to mention it because I think he’s already told more lies in the past.

“But I’m not going to let it slide anymore, because he needs to understand that if he puts things out that aren’t true, I’m going to call him out on it.”

This was not a passing complaint. It sounded like a line in the sand.

De Jong admitted he wanted to “get that anger off his chest” so he can turn his full attention back to what actually matters on the pitch: recovering from his knee problem and getting back in a Barcelona shirt as quickly as possible.