Legendary Dutch coach Aad de Mos believes Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid linked midfielder Frenkie de Jong has already made himself irreplaceable in the Netherlands team.
The 21-year-old Ajax midfielder has emerged as one of the most sought-after young talents in world football, with clubs across Europe wanting to sign him in the near future.
Barcelona and Real Madrid are interesting in snaring him away from Ajax and Tottenham are also one of the clubs who have been linked with having an interest in the Dutchman.
He also made his debut for the national team in September and has already earned three caps, playing a starring role in Netherlands’ 3-0 win over Germany last week.
However, he remained an unused substitute in their 1-1 draw against Belgium on Tuesday night.
De Mos feels in midfield Netherlands have a number of options to choose from, but believes that De Jong should play all the games as they don’t have a replacement for such a world-class talent.
He told ALLSportsradio: “You have someone, who can build up well, which is De Jong.
“You have someone like [Marten] De Roon who can win the balls and you have someone who can play between the lines like [Georginio] Wijnaldum.
“You now have everything.”
De Mos, who has led teams to ten trophies throughout his coaching career, continued: “Wijnaldum can be replaced by Donny van de Beek, [Kevin] Strootman can play in De Roon’s position, but only De Jong cannot be replaced.
“He has already made it, he’s on the world’s radar.
“You cannot ignore him anymore.”
