De Jong, on the Netherlands: 'We are not in crisis'

Despite facing criticism after a hard-fought friendly victory, Dutch midfielder Frenkie de Jong asserted that the Netherlands national team is not experiencing a crisis. The team's performance in their final pre-World Cup friendly, a 2-1 win against Uzbekistan, has drawn scrutiny.

Netherlands required two penalties, the latter converted by Cody Gakpo in the 98th minute, to overcome the modest Uzbekistani side. This narrow win has fueled criticism against Ronald Koeman's squad. However, De Jong remains confident in the team's readiness.

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We are not in crisis. We have to improve in some areas, but I don't see the crisis that is being talked about so much, perhaps by some of you. We are ready, well-prepared. I understand that people are pessimistic, but tomorrow they will have reasons to be optimistic.

"We are not in crisis. We have to improve in some areas, but I don't see the crisis that is being talked about so much, perhaps by some of you," De Jong said at a press conference on Saturday. "We are ready, well-prepared. I understand that people are pessimistic, but tomorrow they will have reasons to be optimistic."

De Jong also commented on the hydration breaks implemented for this World Cup, agreeing with their importance. "Those two minutes are important. In training, we already stop after 22 minutes of work," he noted.

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Those two minutes are important. In training, we already stop after 22 minutes of work.