Why Koeman Must Not Be Sacked -De Jong

Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong has warned the board not to sack Ronald Koeman despite contrasting results in La Liga and in Europe.

Recall that the Catalan side were hammered 3-0 by Benfica in Wednesday’s Champions League, to put Koeman’s seriously at risk.

De Jong felt that Barcelona’s performance in the first half wasn’t too bad, but it was the missed chances which cost the Blaugrana.

He said: “I don’t think changing the coach is the solution,” De Jong declared in his post-match interview.

“I can’t talk about Koeman, it’s not my place.

“We have to keep fighting, stay together and overcome this situation. We can only escape this with hard work and being united as a team.”

“It’s a difficult moment right now, they scored the first goal very early,” he added.

“That always makes things difficult.

“In the first half we didn’t play badly; we created chances but we didn’t score. After the second goal the game was too open and we didn’t react well.”