Struggling to break into Liverpool’s midfield despite having been at the club for seven years, Pedro Chirivella decided it was best for him to leave Anfield and get first-team football elsewhere.
The club who welcomed him were Nantes in Ligue 1, where he has slowly but surely become an important part of the team, helping them win the Coupe de France this year, as they beat OGC Nice 1-0 at the weekend.
The former Liverpool midfielder has played 36 games this season for the French club, scoring three goals and assisting another, with his team currently in the top half of the league under Antoine Kombouaré.
The 24-year-old, who spent his early years at Valencia before heading to Merseyside, sat down with Radio Marca to discuss his recent success, which led to questions about his time at Anfield under Jürgen Klopp.
⚽️🇫🇷 @pedrochb97, en #ElProgramaDeOrtega
💪"Los dos últimos años en el Liverpool fueron muy complicados y en algún momento pensé que esto no era para mí, pero llegar al Nantes lo cambió todo" 📻https://t.co/ilgsizI4uT pic.twitter.com/6DNrIt7RA0
— Radio MARCA (@RadioMARCA) May 10, 2022
He said: “I’m very happy with this title. It’s been a long time since Nantes won something and to be part of history makes me very happy. It can be a very positive change for the club.
“The last two years at Liverpool were very complicated and at some points I thought this wasn’t for me, but coming to Nantes changed everything. Klopp helped me a lot in my career, he helped me to make the choice to come to Nantes. I’m very grateful.”
Over the course of his time with Liverpool, Chirivella made a grand total of 11 appearances for the Reds’ first team, picking up one assist in a 2-2 draw against Shrewsbury in the FA Cup.
