Georginio Wijnaldum reacted to his move to Paris Saint-Germain at the the Dutch press conference on Saturday. The thirty-year-old midfielder, who left Liverpool on a free transfer, admits that he had thought for a long time to move to Barcelona and that it was a difficult choice to ultimately choose the French superpower.
Wijnaldum is asked by a Spanish journalist if he has a message for Barcelona fans, some of whom had already counted on his arrival. “What I can say: I made a different choice, which was very difficult,” said the current captain of the Dutch. “I really negotiated with Barcelona for four weeks, unfortunately we did not come to an agreement. Paris Saint-Germain was a bit more successful and a bit faster.”
“The project they have at PSG also really appealed to me,” continues Wijnaldum, who according to Fabrizio Romano will earn 9.5 million euros a year in Paris, much more than Barça’s offer. “But it was a difficult choice. I have to say that I also thought I would go to Barcelona, also because Barcelona was the only really interested club at the time. But we couldn’t figure it out and with Paris we did.”
Wijnaldum is relieved that his transition has been completed. “I am very happy that I was able to arrange it before the start of the European Championship,” he says. “Or rather that my management was able to deal with Paris Saint-Germain, or any club for that matter, before the tournament started. I want to be one hundred percent focused on what you have to do. I have to say it’s a hectic one. week, because so many things happened. So I had to make choices. That was difficult. They are two clubs that are very big and they are two clubs that you really want to play for.”
The transfer troubles affected the the Dutch squad, Wijnaldum admits. “I have to say it’s a relief is that I was able to make that choice for the European Championship. It was still going to play with the Dutch national team and that is not good. For me personally, that’s how I felt.”