Frenkie de Jong forced off with ankle injury for Barcelona against Athletic

Barcelona suffered a big injury blow on Sunday as Frenkie de Jong was forced off midway through the first half of their La Liga clash against Athletic at San Mames.

The Dutch midfielder sustained an ankle injury as he tried to clear the ball. De Jong seemed to roll his ankle as he landed and was clearly in real pain.

The Barcelona star couldn’t even hobble off the pitch. He tried his best but ultimately had to be whisked off looking really dejected and was replaced by Fermin Lopez.

De Jong’s injury will be a big blow to Xavi as he remains a key player for Barca and the boss will be hoping he’s not set for a lengthy injury lay-off.

Barcelona play Napoli in the second leg of their Champions League last 16 tie against Napoli on March 12, and De Jong now looks a doubt for that game.

The Dutchman suffered an ankle injury earlier this season and ended up missing two months of action for Xavi’s side.