Gini Wijnaldum has laid the blame solely on Liverpool for his Anfield exit this summer with the Dutchman saying he felt unwanted after getting into talks with the club over his contract.
The 30-year-old midfield maestro made the move to Ligue 1 heavyweights Paris Saint-Germain who emerged as the shock frontrunners to land Wijnaldum despite FC Barcelona chasing the player since last summer.
Barcelona had kept close tabs on the then Liverpool first-team regular whose stay on Merseyside was coming to a close at the end of the 2020-21 campaign beyond which Jurgen Klopp’s side were to lose him on a free transfer.
In the end, it was PSG who signed the former Newcastle United man on a three-year-long deal with Wijnaldum one amongst a host of star names arriving at the Le Parc des Princes in this summer’s transfer window.
Speaking to L’Equipe, Wijnaldum claimed that he was keen on staying put at Anfield but the Liverpool camp showed reluctance in handing him an extension following which he made the decision to call it quits and seal a move elsewhere.
“Several months ago, I had expressed the desire to stay in Liverpool but, without going into details, Liverpool did not give me the feeling of wanting to keep me.”
“In these cases, we have to move forward.”
“Barcelona came. I was really happy because, since I was a child, as for the majority of Dutch players, it was the club of my dreams even if I must admit that my idol was Zinedine Zidane.”
“I had a good idea to commit to Barca. But the negotiations lasted a very long time and Paris came in. Unlike six years earlier, the club showed me their desire to recruit me. It was time for me to have something else.”
