Frenkie de Jong eyes early return from injury
- De Jong was initially expected to miss six weeks of action with an ankle injury
- The midfielder has been injured since mid-September
- He suffered the injury in a win over Celta Vigo
Barcelona are hopeful that midfielder Frenkie de Jong will return from injury in time for their El Clasico clash with Real Madrid.
The Dutch international hobbled off after just 36 minutes of Barca's 3-2 win over Celta Vigo in mid-September, suffering an ankle injury before half-time in the game.
The club confirmed the extent of the injury with a press release after carrying out tests, revealing: "Tests carried out on the first team player Frenkie de Jong show that he has an injury to the tibiofibular syndesmosis in his right ankle. He is unavailable for selection and his recovery will dictate his return."
De Jong has missed four games since then, with the player initially expected to miss six weeks of action due to the severity of the injury. That rehab timeline predicted De Jong would return from injury in mid-November, after El Clasico against Madrid on October 28.
According to Mundo Deportivo however, Barcelona are now hopeful that De Jong will be fit in time for that game, with the player having had a splint removed from his ankle in recent days.
Along with De Jong, Barca may also be able to call upon the services of fellow midfield star Pedri for El Clasico.
The 20-year-old has been out with a hamstring problem since the second week of the season but is expected to return for the upcoming Champions League game against Shakhtar Donetsk - three days before the meeting with Madrid.
If both De Jong and Pedri return for the Madrid game, it will be just the third time all season that Xavi Hernandez has been able to call upon the services of his preferred midfield trio of De Jong, Pedri and summer signing Ilkay Gundogan.
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