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'He made another choice' - Wijnaldum shunned offers from Liverpool and Inter, says agent
The Dutch midfielder has departed Anfield as a free agent, with the Netherlands international taking on a new challenge with PSG
Georginio Wijnaldum shunned an offer from Liverpool to keep him at Anfield, says the Dutch midfielder's agent, while Serie A champions Inter also saw attempts to do a deal come up short.
Paris Saint-Germain have won the race for a much sought-after signature, with the classy 30-year-old leaving Jurgen Klopp's side as a free agent.
Efforts were made to prolong a five-year stint on Merseyside, while Italian heavyweights were keen at the turn of the year, but Wijnaldum decided to make "another choice" and will now be taking on a new challenge in France.
What has been said?
Wijnaldum's representative, Humphry Nijman, has told the Here We Go Podcast: "He had a fantastic time at Liverpool.
"It started when we visited the house of Mr Klopp and a plan was made that they wanted to win the championship and the Champions League, and that was achieved.
"That was fantastic for the fans in Liverpool, fantastic for the manager and fantastic for the player. The player was really happy they achieved their goals.
"His contract was expiring so he was a free agent after this season.
"Of course, an attempt was made [to keep him at Liverpool] but he made another choice."
Nijman added on the interest his client attracted: "It started quite early, in January Inter Milan showed interest.
"They made an offer for Gini but there were problems with the owners getting the money out of China so Inter wasn't able to fulfil their initial obligations.
"They had made him a very, very good offer. If the financial problems were not there, it could have been a serious option.
"After that the director of Juventus phoned me and showed interest. Also in the same period, (sporting director) Leonardo from PSG approached me. We knew [head coach Ronald] Koeman at Barcelona would like to bring Georginio to Barcelona. At a later stage Bayern Munich showed an interest.
"[PSG boss Mauricio] Pochettino had talks with Gini and how he saw his role and what he expected from him.
"Barcelona we had some talks and initially it looked all really good and we were along the way [to an agreement] but Paris were telling us their interest was quite serious. When both offers came on the table, he had to make a choice."
The bigger picture
Barcelona were considered to be leading the chase for Wijnaldum at one stage, with Koeman making no secret of his desire to get a fellow countryman in alongside him at Camp Nou.
Time was taken, though, with an important career call, with PSG able to nip in and agree a notable deal.
Wijnaldum took in 237 appearances for Liverpool, claiming Champions League and Premier League titles along the way, but will be representing Ligue 1 heavyweights in 2021-22.
