Former England midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain sought a new home at Liverpool from Arsenal in the summer of 2017 as a result of his desire to be used as a midfielder. He has the dexterity to play as a winger and was impressive in his first season with the club.
However, he was then affected by a serious injury and gradually dropped down the pecking order in the team. Add to that the emergence of young players such as Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott, and he found himself off the bench for more than half of last season’s games.
As a result, he left Liverpool at the end of last season when his contract expired and decided to take on a new challenge in Turkey.
Although there was speculation of contract negotiations with Liverpool, it seems that there were no discussions at all and the news was only reported shortly before the official announcement was made.
“It was never said,”
“I obviously got the picture (laughs).”
“I got told before they released the statement (three days before that Villa game): ‘Just so you know, we’re putting this out about you, Milly, Bobby and Naby leaving’.”
“And I was like, ‘Oh, OK. Thanks’. But there was nothing official at any point before.”
“It was just… the silence was enough to know what the situation was.”
“You just… expect certain things to be told — whether it’s good, bad, whatever, that’s how the game goes.”
“The lack of communication was… a bit surprising to me.”
the Athletic
Year after year, Jurgen Klopp used him less and less, and his last season at Liverpool was not a meaningful one.
He revealed that even though he did not get enough playing time, he had a good relationship with the German manager.
“We (he and Klopp) had a good relationship.”
“There was never any falling-out or anything like that.”
“I understand as a manager it’s not easy to navigate every player’s needs, but when I was playing, I definitely enjoyed him a lot more than when I wasn’t even on the bench (laughs).”
“But that’s how it goes.”
“I had great, great times at Liverpool. I couldn’t say anything bad about my time there.”
“I wouldn’t even say it ended badly.”
the Athletic