Barcelona will have 16 players participating for their respective nations in the 2022 FIFA World Cup which will be held in Qatar later this month. This prestigious FIFA tournament is happening for the first time in the Middle East.
Let’s focus on three of those 16 Barcelona players and try to see how they will fare in this edition of the World Cup.
Memphis Depay (Netherlands)
Depay has endured a frustrating campaign at the Nou Camp as he has struggled to earn regular game time at the Catalan club. He has only made three appearances for Barca this season, scoring one goal in the process across all competitions.
The Netherlands international has got a great goal-scoring record while playing for his country after he scored 42 goals in 81 international matches for them so far. Hence, we can expect him to play a much more important role for his nation when the World Cup kicks off in Qatar on November 20. The Netherlands will have to depend on his goal-scoring prowess if they are serious about going on a long run this edition of the World Cup.
Frenkie De Jong (Netherlands)
De Jong has experienced a tough season with Barcelona as he has struggled to be consistent for them at the centre of the park. Still, he deserves some credit for scoring two goals and picking up one assist in 17 matches for the Catalan giants during this campaign across various competitions.
On his day, the 25-year-old can still run the show on his own in the middle of the park for the Netherlands national team. Therefore, it’s safe to assume that he will play a crucial role for the Dutch side alongside Marten de Roon and Davy Klaassen during this FIFA World Cup.
Andreas Christensen (Denmark)
The Denmark international has found game time hard to come by at the Nou Camp in recent months since his big move from Chelsea last summer. Christensen has only featured in eight matches for Xavi’s side this season and is only averaging 0.8 tackles, 0.6 interceptions and 1.8 clearances per 90 minutes in La Liga (stats via whoscored). However, he has already got 51 international caps for Denmark under his belt. Hence, the European nation will depend on his defensive skillset to hopefully qualify from the group stages of this World Cup.
However, Christensen’s recent lack of game time suggests that his form in the tournament could suffer because of it. Still, the Denmark fans will be hopeful that he can perform at a high level alongside Joachim Andersen at the centre of Kasper Hjulmand’s defence.
