De Jong to captain Netherlands against Greece, Xavi confirms

What happened

Frenkie de Jong will captain the Netherlands in their Nations League match against Greece, the Dutch coach Xavi said on Thursday. Xavi, the former Barcelona boss now in charge of the national team, confirmed the decision while speaking to the media, with Virgil van Dijk unavailable for the game. The report comes from Get Spanish Football News, which cited Xavi's remarks.

Report details

Xavi said De Jong's leadership role reflects how well he knows the Barcelona midfielder. "Frenkie de Jong will be our captain tomorrow. I know him very well, and this is one of the reasons," Xavi said. He added that De Jong is "very important for us because our style of play is to have the ball, and he doesn't lose the ball easily," and noted that the player also knows his staff. "I am happy to have him back in our squad," Xavi said.

The captaincy comes as De Jong returns from a long-term injury sustained at the World Cup over the summer. The 29-year-old was included in the Netherlands squad for a Nations League double-header against Greece and Germany. The source did not specify which of the two matches the captaincy applies to beyond Xavi's reference to "tomorrow."