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Photo by Joachim Bywaletz/DeFodi Images via Getty Images
The RB Leipzig midfielder talked about his decision to stay in Germany rather than join the Reds late in the transfer window.
When Liverpool players began to fall to injury and the club reversed course, seeking to bring in a midfielder this summer rather than waiting for next year, one of the rumoured top targets Konrad Laimer.
The 25-year-old RB Leipzig man has now been asked about that interest, and he says he decided not to leave for the simple reason of not wanting to be forced into a quick decision.
“A hasty departure is not my thing,” the Austrian told Bild following the close of the summer transfer window. “If I were to change clubs, I would want to think it through and decide calmly, not overnight.
“Especially since the first half of the season is very short anyway due to the World Cup and you wouldn’t have had time to settle in and find your feet.”
Changing clubs is an adjustment, and players can take time to get up to speed—and sometimes they never do. A month into the season, with the World Cup on the horizon, would have meant more risk than usual for Laimer.
He’s settled and comfortable at Leipzig, went through a pre-season and started the season with them, and so chose to stay. For the Reds it’s disappointing but understandable.
As for where Laimer ends up next, while Liverpool has been proposed as a destination for him next summer on a free, most believe Bayern Munich are favourites and nothing he said now will change that.
“The Premier League is nice but for me it’s not a must,” he added. ‘It’s much more important to me how do people talk to me, what feeling do I have. It wasn’t so hot that anything would have happened.”
