Gini Wijnaldum should have remained at Liverpool

Last summer, Gini Wijnaldum departed Liverpool and joined Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer.

It was a sad day when the midfielder announced that he was leaving the club. Wijnaldum was a superb player for the Reds.

Between 2016-21, the Dutchman made 237 appearances for Liverpool. Wijnaldum played a pivotal part in helping the club win the two biggest trophies in club football - the UEFA Champions League and Premier League title.

The 31-year-old brought plenty of quality to Liverpool's midfield, which Reds boss Jurgen Klopp has explained perfectly below.

The 54-year-old told the club's official website back in October 2019 the following: "Gini speaks on the pitch for the way he plays. It's just so obvious his importance. It is just so obvious his importance. It is both directions, small spaces, big spaces, it is hard challenges, fine football, pretty much all of that.

"Is he the perfect midfielder? From the skillset 100 per cent. He has all the things you need."

Klopp added: "He is not the tallest, but he is good in the air. He is a good jumper with good timing, all that stuff. It all makes him a pretty good footballer.

"That is how it should be. It is not my fault if he goes under the radar. You cannot ask me why he goes under the radar. I don't set the radar!"

Wijnaldum was also capable of scoring important goals for Liverpool. The 31-year-old found the back of the net on two separate occasions during the club's 2019 Champions League semi-final tie against Barcelona.

The Reds defeated the Spanish giants 4-3 on aggregate to progress to the final.

During Wijnaldum's six years at the club, he ended up scoring 22 goals and registering 16 assists for the first-team.

There is no denying that Liverpool were justified in paying Newcastle United €27.50 million to secure Wijnaldum's services.

But, Wijnaldum has struggled since joining PSG. He has been averaging a WhoScored player rating of 6.49 across the 2021-22 Ligue 1 campaign. Wijnaldum has also been in and out of the side.

With that being the case, we have started to ask ourselves, did the midfielder make the right decision by leaving Anfield?

Klopp hinted that he wanted Wijnaldum to stay and there was reportedly a contract offer on the table. But, he turned his back on the club to try something new.

As quoted by the Mirror, Klopp said the following after Wijnaldum departed Liverpool: "Gini was the most consistently available player.

"I loved his way of playing and how reliable he was. But he's not here anymore."

Klopp was spot on about how Wijnaldum rarely missed a match, and that was because he was not injury-prone. Sure, he missed the odd game with a knock or illness, but he was never out of action for too long.

Wijnaldum was loved by the Anfield faithful. You would have to say that he made the wrong call by leaving Liverpool.

The grass isn't always greener on the other side. Wijnaldum had a great time at Liverpool, so it's a shame that it had to come to an end so soon.

The midfielder is only 31 years of age, so he could have represented the Reds for a few more years. But, it wasn't to be.

In saying that, we do hope that Wijnaldum can turn his form around at PSG. We never want to see a legend of Liverpool struggle. Therefore, we do wish Wijnaldum all the best going forward.

The Dutchman's contract with PSG expires in the summer of 2024.