Xavi’s Oranje Revolution: Memphis Depay Cut from National Team
Xavi’s Oranje revolution has its first major casualty.
Memphis Depay, chasing the all-time scoring record for the Netherlands, has been cut from the new national-team squad. No injury, no suspension. Just dropped.
For a player long treated as untouchable, the message could not be clearer: reputation no longer guarantees a place. Not under Xavi.
The former Barcelona coach has opened his reign with a ruthless reset, choosing form and fitness over history. Memphis is still waiting for his first goal in Brazil with Corinthians, and that drought has cost him his seat on the plane for the upcoming international window. The break with the Ronald Koeman era is stark. The old guard no longer has automatic rights.
Memphis is not alone. Marten de Roon and Wout Weghorst have also been left out, two more familiar faces swept aside as Xavi redraws the hierarchy.
Injuries have shaped the squad as well. Frenkie de Jong remains out with the knee problem he picked up at the World Cup, delaying the anticipated reunion with his former Barcelona manager. Mats Wieffer is also missing through injury, while Stefan de Vrij’s time with the national team looks to be fading after his move to Greece, his name now increasingly distant from the core conversation.
There is good news at the back, though. Jurrien Timber returns after his long battle with a serious knee injury that forced him to miss the World Cup. His comeback offers fresh energy and versatility to a defence that Xavi clearly wants to rebuild around pace and anticipation.
If the cuts are brutal, the new faces are bold.
Ruben van Bommel, son of former Oranje stalwart Mark van Bommel, headlines the influx of youth. The PSV Eindhoven winger has exploded out of the blocks this season, already producing two goals and two assists in the league after his own recovery from a cruciate ligament injury. Xavi has rewarded that surge, not the surname.
At Feyenoord, Gjivai Zechiel has played his way into the picture. A technical midfielder with an eye for goal, he has already struck five times this season from midfield, forcing his way into the conversation through sheer productivity. His rise fits neatly with Xavi’s preference for midfielders who can both construct and finish attacks.
Then there is Joey Veerman, perhaps the most intriguing name on the list.
Once frozen out under Koeman after a poor showing against Austria at Euro 2024, Veerman became a lightning rod in the Dutch media, his tactical suitability publicly questioned and his status reduced to that of an outcast. A move to Borussia Dortmund and a fresh start in the Bundesliga have changed the narrative. Xavi has decided the 27-year-old playmaker still belongs at this level.
Veerman’s range of passing and ability to pierce defensive lines from deep align perfectly with the kind of high-technical, possession-heavy midfield Xavi has always demanded. If this Oranje side is to dominate the ball, Veerman’s rehabilitation could be central to that plan.
At the heart of it all stands the captain, still in orange.
Virgil van Dijk had openly hinted he might walk away from international duty after the painful World Cup exit to Morocco. That doubt has been put to bed. Following private talks with Xavi in August, the Liverpool defender has committed to continue as leader of the side.
He remains the anchor of a back line that also includes Premier League names Micky van de Ven and Jan Paul van Hecke, a blend of experience and emerging quality that gives Xavi a strong foundation to build on.
Not every selection follows the traditional script. While some national-team coaches have turned their backs on players heading to the Middle East, Xavi has not. Tijjani Reijnders and Crysencio Summerville keep their places despite recent moves to the Saudi Pro League, a clear sign that he intends to judge on performance and suitability, not postcode.
A new manager, a brutal reset, big names out, hungry talent in.
Xavi has drawn his line. How many more established stars will find themselves on the wrong side of it before this new Dutch cycle truly takes shape?
