Written by Priya Kaur
Martin Zubimendi to Liverpool is no more as the Spanish international rejected the Reds in favour of an extended stay at his boyhood club Real Sociedad regardless of being offered an enticing proposition of becoming a lynchpin in Arne Slot’s midfield.
To find out more, we spoke to Spanish journalist and Sociedad reporter Andoni Otxotorena who explained the breakdown in negotiations.
It comes as no surprise that Andoni revealed the deciding factor was Zubimendi’s loyalty to La Real, something of ‘prestigious honour’ and as Liverpool fans, we experienced a similar situation when Steven Gerrard chose to stay with us.
Another example is despite being targeted by a European giant, Barcelona, Nico Williams is torn with his decision due to his loyalty to his current club Athletic Bilbao.
Zubimendi rejects Liverpool & Barcelona come in for Luis Diaz! | The Liverpool Transfer Podcast
Andoni divulged that he, like many Sociedad fans, expected Zubimendi to move onto a bigger project this summer, due to his intelligent footballing ability, and after the agreement was nearly reached on Thursday last week…
Andoni said: “It was so close. I think he practically gave the confirmation to Liverpool and we all thought that he was leaving. But, Aperribay, the president of Sociedad moved very quickly and offered him a very high contract, also for many years.
“We are speaking about €4/5million also for six, seven years. Liverpool can offer him more money also but for us, it’s a very huge offer. On Saturday and Sunday, he had a little bit of doubt and finally, he decided to stay. But as I said on Wednesday and Thursday he was out, he was at Liverpool.”
On Zubimendi’s loyalty he said: “Yeah we can see it here and in Basque culture, with Atletico Bilbao, Nico Williams and Barcelona, this loyalty is undeniable. Here the point is that Zubimendi is a very very good player so we understand that he and the likes of Xabi Alonso are loyal but they want to win other trophies. We understand if he wanted to leave the club, but he decided to stay so he is our idol nowadays, all the city is going to buy his shirt. In Real Sociedad, we are the club with the most one-club men in La Liga.”
On Zubimendi potentially moving on in the future: “I thought that this was the time, we thought it was the perfect summer to leave, Zubimendi has played five years here, he has won a title, he played Champions League last year, he has given Real Sociedad a long career. The city is very happy. We think that he’s the second-best midfielder in the world, he’s a huge player.”
Martín Zubimendi REJECTS LIVERPOOL | LFC Fans REACTION!
Andoni reports that due to the club potentially losing two big names with the likes of Merino being heavily linked with Arsenal, and Robin Le Normand having recently departed to Atletico Madrid, fans across Donostia are experiencing pure joy upon hearing the news that Zubimendi wants to stay.
The feeling of pure relief surrounding the city of San Sebastian contrasts with the tense atmosphere in Liverpool, where fans face the upcoming season with a mix of hope and nervous anticipation.
Redmen Reacts
Whilst missing out on a top transfer target is always a bitter pill to swallow for any club, Liverpool now have the rather unenviable record of failing to land a chosen midfielder on a number of occasions having watched on as Jude Bellingham, Moises Caiceido, Romeo Lavia and Aurélien Tchouaméni all found new homes away from Anfield.
However, despite the disappointment, perhaps the more irking element of this one is that it would appear The Reds have no alternative option lined up and in fact it could be a case of Slot moving forward with what he has at his disposal for the new campaign, potentially even further weakened by additional outgoings.
With 18 days left in the window and defensive midfield candidates not exactly in short supply, surely there is time to strike a deal somewhere…
