Birthday Boys- Frenkie de Jong and Marcelo

Today we look at another pairing of players. Two El Clasico rivals, FC Barcelona’s Frankie de Jong and Real Madrid’s Marcelo.

Frenkie de Jong

The Barcelona midfielder turns 23 today and what a whirlwind of a career he’s had so far.

De Jong started his career at Willem II in 2014 and made the switch to Ajax in 2015 for £9 million, but was loaned back to Willem II a day later.

In the four months that the midfielder played for Willem, he played nine games, scoring twice.

In December 2015, De Jong returned back to Jong Ajax. He played 15 games in the remainder of the season, scoring twice and assisting three times.

The 16/17 season saw the Dutch midfielder sign his professional contract for Ajax and play 34 games in youth football, scoring six goals and creating eight assists. He also appeared in eight games for the Ajax senior team scoring one goal.

The following season saw De Jong used more in the Ajax team appearing 24 times in the senior team assisting on eight occasions.

The 18/19 season was Frenkie’s most impressive yet, appearing 48 times in the senior team, scoring four goals and assisting four times. Ajax went far in the Champions League missing out on the final that season after Lucas Moura scoring a late winner for Tottenham Hotspur. His performances didn’t go unnoticed and earned him a big move away from Ajax.

£67.5 million Barcelona paid for De Jong to secure the Dutchman’s move to Catalonia. He’s featured in 37 games up to this stage of the season with De Jong recording two goals and four assists as he slowly adapts to the Barcelona way.

On the international stage, De Jong has made 13 appearances for the Dutch National Team and will look to add more caps in the future.

Only two trophies sit currently in Frenkie’s trophy cabinet a double in the 18/19 season consisting of the Dutch Cup and the Eredivisie title. Hopefully more trophies will come for the midfielder and he continues to work to get to the top with Barcelona.

Marcelo

The Brazilian full-back turns 32 today and he has reached some serious heights in his career since joining Real Madrid back in 2007. Let’s look back at his career so far.

Marcelo started his career at Fluminense and in 2006 he was offered his chance at senior level for the Brazilian club. A year later, Marcelo was on his way to Spain as Real Madrid signed the defender for just shy of £6 million.

In the remainder of what was the 06/07 season, Marcelo played six games in that time as he looked to establish himself as a first team player.

07/08 season saw Marcelo play more regularly, playing 32 times and assisting on three occasions. 08/09 season saw Marcelo play more games for Los Blancos, 34 games with four goals and five assists.

For the first time in his career, Marcelo reached over 40 games in a season. The 09/10 season saw the Brazillian feature 42 times for Real, scoring four goals and assisting nine times.

The next season saw Marcelo feature 50 times in the season, scoring five goals and assisting ten goals. The 11/12 season saw Marcelo feature fewer times (44), but still contributing to goals and assists scoring three goals and assisting ten times.

An injury to the defender sidelined him for most of the 12/13 season. He appeared 19 times for Real, scoring once and assisting once.

The 13/14 season saw Marcelo return and play 39 games that season with the next season saw Marcelo reach over 50 games again in his career. 53 games in the 14/15 season saw the defender contribute to 14 goals.

The following season saw Marcelo feature 41 times for Real and the season after saw another decrease in appearance this time featuring 36 times.

As competition has grown for Marcelo he has been given fewer minutes and full-backs like Ferland Mendy started in that left-back position.

Over 500 appearances for Real Madrid doesn’t go unnoticed and he has been a vital part of the squad whilst at the club.

On the international stage, he’s made 58 appearances for Brazil scoring six goals and winning the Confederations Cup back in 2013.

He’s won many big trophies with Real. These include: 4x Champions League winner, 4x Spanish champion, 2x Spanish cup winner, 4x Spanish Supercup winner, 4x FIFA Club Worldcup winner and 3x UEFA Supercup winner.

It’s a shame to see Marcelo sat on the sidelines and not being played, but without a shadow of a doubt one of the best left-back of my generation.

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