Arsenal fell £3m short of signing former Real Madrid midfielder

Arsenal fell £3 million short of signing Xabi Alonso, the Spaniard has revealed in an interview with the Liverpool Echo.

Alonso joined Liverpool in 2004, winning the UEFA Champions League, the Super Cup, the FA Cup and the Community Shield a short while later. 

While most of his Liverpool career was all plain sailing, the last two years were marred by issues concerning his transfer as Rafael Benitez tried to sign Gareth Barry in 2008. Alonso stayed on for another year but eventually moved to Real Madrid.

However, Madrid weren’t the only team after the 35-year old, with Arsenal and Juventus both interested.

“I said to him, ‘Rafa, of course. I need to accept this – you are the ones who make these decisions’. But, in the end, nothing happened. My position changed a little bit because I wasn’t expecting the manager to say I could be sold.”

“I was really close to Juventus and I was close to Arsenal. But, it was just £3m. Liverpool were asking £18m and both offered £15m – so that’s why it didn’t happen.”