Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has opened up about his departure from Liverpool this summer, revealing that he was only officially told days before his departure was confirmed that he would not be offered a new contract.
The 30-year-old left Anfield after six years at the club when his contract expired at the end of last season, and he was given a fond farewell by the fans after the final home game against Aston Villa on May 20 alongside Roberto Firmino, James Milner and Naby Keita.
Oxlade-Chamberlain’s departure was hardly unexpected after making just nine top-flight appearances all season, but the England international claims manager Jurgen Klopp never spoke to him about his future during the final months of his stay on Merseyside.
Looking back on the final stages of last season, Oxlade-Chamberlain said The Athletics: ‘Some of the younger players were given the opportunity to be involved, which helped them prepare for the years to come, which I understand.
“I’m assuming you want this to be communicated to you because you’re going crazy thinking, ‘What else can I do here?’ And it is never really written off that you are not offered a new contract.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain parted ways with Liverpool in the summer after six years at the club
He has revealed there was a ‘surprising lack of communication’ with Jurgen Klopp prior to his departure
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‘It was never said (that he wouldn’t get a new deal). Obviously I have the photo (laughs).
‘Before they released the statement (three days before the Villa game) I was told: ‘For the record, we are publishing this about you, Milly, Bobby and Naby leaving.’ And I was like, “Oh, okay. Thanks.” But before that there was nothing official. It was just… the silence was enough to know what the situation was.”
‘You just expect certain things to be told – whether it’s good, bad or whatever, that’s the way the game goes. The lack of communication was…a bit surprising.”
Despite not getting a clearer picture of his future, Oxlade-Chamberlain insisted he has always had a strong relationship with Klopp, but admitted he is now fully aware of how cutthroat the business side of football can be.
‘We (he and Klopp) had a good relationship. There was never an argument or anything like that,” Oxlade-Chamberlain said.
‘I understand that as a manager it is not easy to meet the needs of every player, but when I played I definitely enjoyed him a lot more than when I was not even on the bench (laughs). But that’s how it goes.
‘The longer I play the game, the more I realize that you are really just one entity in the grand scheme of a company. There will be many more after us and there were many more, people who had great experiences.
Oxlade-Chamberlain made just nine Premier League appearances last season and admits it was clear he wouldn’t get a new contract despite not being officially told
‘I had great, great times at Liverpool. I couldn’t say anything bad about my time there. I wouldn’t even say it ended badly. Ultimately, the club is bigger than any one player. Sometimes there’s bigger fish to fry.’
Following his release from Liverpool, Oxlade-Chamberlain has since moved to Besiktas, scoring his first goal for the Turkish club last month.
Offers were on the table this summer and he admitted he considered moving to Saudi Arabia with some of his former teammates but opted to go to Turkey for family and football reasons.
“I was tempted to join the Saudi Pro League,” he said.
“During the transfer window the whole shape of it changed as more boys went there and it became more attractive with how many boys there would be and how that would improve the competition. So I certainly didn’t say, “No, I would never do that.”
But Oxlade-Chamberlain has a young family with partner Perrie Edwards and believes it would have been a ‘different experience’ if they had taken regular connecting flights to Riyadh.
Oxlade-Chamberlain has his sights set on winning the league with Besiktas this season
He was also enthusiastic about the project presented to him at Besiktas, with the team looking to win the league after falling short last season.
“I spoke to the manager (Gunes), talked about positions and the most important decision for me was to start playing football again as soon as possible,” he explained.
“It’s a big club, it’s not far from my family – they’re back and forth a lot – and it made sense for me to come here. The team finished third last season and maybe people see us as underdogs, but I like that.
“I like that challenge, coming here with guys like Eric Bailly and Ante Rebic and trying to win the league.”