Tge Liverpool ex player admits he regrets his Liverpool career and still wonders how things could have gone better.
The Dutchman was just 20 when he joined the Reds from Ajax for £11.5m in July 2007. He had an impressive first season on Merseyside, scoring 10 goals and providing six assists in 49 appearances (29 of which were starts), but ultimately struggled with consistency and later dropped out of the top flight. He scored 22 goals in 146 appearances for Liverpool before being sold to Hoffenheim for £8m in January 2011, his move helping to fund a twin attack of Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll. Still only 24 at the time, he later enjoyed some of the best moments of his career in Turkey with Kasimpasha, Besiktas and Galatasaray.
Babel, now 37, admitted he was considering retirement after his last club, Turkish top-flight side Eyufspor, terminated his contract at the end of September. Looking back on his time at Liverpool, he believes the striker would have been more successful had he not moved to Anfield at such a young age. Seriously, you’re putting me in danger!” Asked if he had retired, he told LFC TV:
“Two months ago, I broke my contract with my last team in Turkey. Now I’m gradually getting used to my freedom. You start thinking. 20 years have passed and now I am 37 years old. “I still really like football, but I still have a lot to think about.”Reflecting on his time at the Reds, he said: “As you grow and eventually as time goes on, you think and realize, ‘I’ve been part of a great club.’ Unfortunately, it wasn’t until I left and looked back on my time here that I felt grateful and happy that they were part of this club. “It’s always an afterthought. Maybe this (joining a club when you’re older) will be the best decision. I wasn’t very consistent and I was only 20 years old when I joined.
Unfortunately, after I left, my adulthood was around 24 or 25. In the end, I could conclude that things would have been better if I had come later. It’s been 13 years since Babel last played for Liverpool, but he still follows the fortunes of his former club from afar. After spending half a season alongside Ryan Gravenburch at Ajax in 2020, he has backed the 21-year-old to succeed at striker-starved Anfield. Asked what he thought of Gravenburch and Cody Gakpo’s debuts for their Liverpool careers, he said: “They are impressive, very impressive.” “With these players who know what they have done for Holland and the national team, there are more places at Liverpool.
For Ryan in particular, if you look at his last season at Ajax, it was almost the same. Free.” Like a fish. If he feels that way, if he feels completely comfortable, I think he will give Liverpool a lot more than he did.When asked about Gakpo’s optimal position, Babel said, “If you ask him, I think he’s an extremist by nature. But once the World Cup started, Louis van Gaal exposed him as a false nine. I think the False Nine started with the World Cup. He performed very well in Holland and I think Jurgen Klopp also sees potential in Holland.
It is clear that he can do this.“It’s always good to be versatile and be able to give the team extra opportunities when they need injuries or suspensions. And for him, that will increase his playing time even more.” It’s always good to be versatile and be able to give the team a little extra edge during an injury or suspension period. And for him, that will even increase the playing time. More. .”Babel was at Anfield on New Year’s Day to watch Liverpool beat Newcastle United 4-2. With this victory, the lead in the Premier League increased to three points, five points behind Manchester City and Arsenal.
The forward still sees Pep Guardiola’s side as favorites to win the title this season, but believes there is still room for improvement at his former club and has urged him to prove the predictions wrong.”Liverpool are clearly fighting to win the title again,” he said. “They have a good squad, I think they are still looking for their final XI. It rotates a little here and there.
There is room for improvement, but so far it works very well. “I don’t know what they will do in the transfer market. Of course, this is always an opportunity to improve the team. They want to compete again.”There is a stigma attached to what Manchester City have achieved in recent years. “It’s up to Liverpool and other teams who want to compete to prove the rest of the world wrong.”
