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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Colin Millar

Georginio Wijnaldum addresses transfer return after Jurgen Klopp regret admission

Georginio Wijnaldum is leaving Paris Saint-Germain this summer and has spoken on his possible destinations – with Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp having once described him as the 'perfect midfielder'.

The Dutch international midfielder left Anfield as a free agent after his contract at the club expired in the summer of 2021, before joining Paris Saint-Germain. But his spell in the French capital was described as a 'nightmare' and he subsequently went on loan to Roma, enduring an injury-hit campaign.

Wijnaldum's exit from the Reds has not gone as planned and he even admitted during his season in the French capital that he was not "completely happy" in Ligue 1 following his transfer. Wijnaldum struggled to adapt to PSG and a local media outlet even harshly labelled him as the 'Ligue 1 Flop of the Year'.

A week after making his debut for the Italian giants in August, Wijnaldum suffered a tibia fracture in training and was forced to sit out six months of the campaign as he recuperated. He scored twice in a limited season in which he made just 12 starts across all competitions.

Now Wijnaldum has returned to PSG after the expiration of his loan spell in the Italian capital and the French champions are now trying to sort out a permanent exit for the Dutch international. A report in Foot Mercato details how the midfielder is not short of proposals but there is no clear destination.

Among the clubs who are said to be monitoring the midfielder’s situation are his former Eredivisie clubs Feyenoord and PSV Eindhoven. However, Wijnaldum has stated that while those may be possible destinations, they are not his priority right now.

Wijnaldum left Anfield in the summer of 2021 after five years (Getty Images)

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“I've read all sorts of things about PSV and Feyenoord over the past few days,” Wijnaldum explained, while on international duty with the Netherlands. “I will keep all options open this summer. But a return to the Netherlands is not my first option now.”

Wijnaldum was an indispensable member of Klopp's squad during his five-year spell at Anfield. Underlining his importance, the midfielder missed just 11 of 190 possible Premier League appearances for the club during that time.

Klopp said of Wijnaldum during his time at Anfield: "It is not my fault if he goes under the radar. Gini speaks on the pitch with the way he plays. He is the perfect midfielder. He has all the things you need: both directions, small spaces, big spaces, hard challenges, fine football, all of that.

"Gini is a good personality in the dressing room. He is not the guy who says yes to everything."

Wijnaldum joined Liverpool in the first summer transfer window under Klopp – signed from Newcastle, who had just been relegated – and he became an instrumental member of the first team, making a total of 237 appearances for the Reds across five seasons – in which he bagged 22 goals.

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