Former Liverpool midfielder, Georginio Wijnaldum has claimed that he was not loved and appreciated by some people when he was playing for the Premier League club.
The 30-year-old Dutch central midfielder claimed that he was always blamed on social media whenever Liverpool lost a match, especially by the club’s online fans.
Georginio Wijnaldum joined Liverpool football club on July 22, 2016, from Newcastle United for a transfer fee worth 30. 25 million dollars. He played with the club until the end of the 2021-2022 season.
Before his contract with Liverpool ended, it was already everywhere in the news that the Netherlands international would not renew his stay at Anfield.
Then, FC Barcelona looked like his next destination because the coach of the club, Ronald Koeman who was his coach in the Netherlands national team between 2018 and 2020, wanted the player to join him at Nou Camp. When the deal was almost looking possible, PSG came into the picture.
To the dismay of many, Georginio Wijnaldum decided to leave Liverpool to join French Ligue 1 side PSG for free. After he signed the deal, he said he decided to snub Barcelona because the Spanish side were not forthcoming in their negotiations.
Before he left Liverpool, Wijnaldum played 237 times in which he provided 16 assists and scored 22 goals. His effort helped Liverpool to win one UEFA Champions League, one Premier League title, one UEFA Super Cup, and one FIFA Club World Cup.
In a press conference during the weekend, Georginio Wijnaldum said he enjoyed a lot of support from the club’s fans who always come to the stadium to watch the club’s games. He also noted that he was loved by his teammates, coaches, and other staff at the club but he was not so loved and appreciated by the club’s fans on social media.
“There was a moment when I didn’t feel loved and appreciated,” the 30-year-old Dutch midfielder said.
“Not my teammates, not the people at Melwood [Liverpool’s training ground]. From them, I know, I can say they all love me and I love them. It was not from that side, more the other side…
“I have to say also there were social media,” added Wijnaldum.
“When it went bad, I was the player who they blamed – that I wanted to leave.
“Every day in training and the games, I gave everything I had to bring it to a good end because, during the years, Liverpool meant so much to me and because of the way the fans in the stadium were treating me.
“My feeling was that the fans in the stadium and the fans on social media were two different kinds.
“The fans in the stadium always supported me. Even when they came back [when fans could attend games], already knowing that I was going to leave, they still supported me and, in the end, they gave me a great farewell.
“On social media, if we lost, I was the one who got the blame.”
Georginio Wijnaldum signed a three-year contract with PSG which means that the Dutchman will stay at the French club until June 30, 2024.
