Glen Johnson, a former Reds defender, said that Martin Zubimendi will be hating himself for turning down Liverpool.
The midfielder, who won the Euro 2024 championship, looked set to move to Anfield in August, as Liverpool was willing to pay his little over £50 million release clause. Zubimendi did, however, decide to stay with Real Sociedad, who have had a disastrous start to the season, at the last minute.
With just one victory in their first seven La Liga games, the Basque team is currently ranked 16th in the standings. The 25-year-old is currently engaged in a relegation struggle rather than competing in the Champions League and winning the Premier League.
According to rumours circulating lately, Zubimendi feels bad for turning down Arne Slot and secretly hopes Liverpool would show more interest in January after failing to sign a central midfield player before the transfer window closed.
Although Johnson respects Zubimendi’s commitment to Sociedad, he is nevertheless taken aback by his choice to decline the six-time European champion. It’s difficult to turn Liverpool down when they come calling, but you can admire his decision to stay faithful to his team, the former England defender told BetFred.
“I’m shocked he turned down the move in the first place, as everyone would have preferred the play for them.
“Given that Real Sociedad has been having difficulty in La Liga this season, I completely understand if he is now apparently regretting the decision. Knowing that he might have been vying for the Premier League championship but is now facing relegation in La Liga, he will be kicking himself.
Even if Zubimendi is a target for attention, no negotiations have taken place over a new contract, as Sociedad president Jokin Aperribay recently stated to the local newspaper Noticias de Gipuzkoa: “There hasn’t been before and there hasn’t been now.” He made no demands of us regarding a new contract.
He recognised that it was a market in which some players were already set to depart and that now was the right opportunity to remain at Real Sociedad. Neither of us has mentioned a renewal, nor has he made it a requirement. The exchange with Martín was brief and to the point.
Although Slot claims that Liverpool has “moved on” from the Zubimendi scandal, he still believes that a new approach for the Spain star is possible since he wants to add a top player to his midfield.
