Fabinho has become the latest Premier League star to move to Saudi Arabia in a £40million move from Liverpool.
The Brazilian midfielder joins N’Golo Kante and Karim Benzema at Al-Ittihad after the Pro League club launched a surprise bid to sign him.
Liverpool agreed to sell Fabinho after five years at Anfield, despite him starting pre-season as expected earlier this summer. He was then withdrawn from their training camp in Germany after the £40m offer was accepted.
Fabinho posted on social media as he confirmed the move: “Today I leave my home. It’s been five years wearing this jersey and always with the greatest honor and happiness possible.
“Since day one at Liverpool, I’ve been embraced by everyone. What I saw inside this club, the relationship between the people there, made me feel like family. In these five years, I grew as a player, as a man, I made dreams come true.”
Fabinho, 29, cost £43.5m when signing from Monaco and went on to become a stalwart in Jurgen Klopp’s team.
He helped win the Premier League in 2020 and the Champions League a year earlier but was in and out of the side last season, partly due to injuries.
Today I leave my home. It's been five years wearing this jersey and always with the greatest honor and happiness possible. Since day one at Liverpool, I've been embraced by everyone. What I saw inside this club, the relationship between the people there, made me feel like family.… pic.twitter.com/r2c7dOwKqV
— Fabinho (@_fabinhotavares) July 31, 2023
“Thanks to Liverpool, I lived the biggest match of my life, the comeback against Barcelona, ââwhich was only possible thanks to Anfield,” Fabinho continued.
“That moment will always be in my memory. I love what this crowd represents for the club. This love relationship between the club and the fans has always impressed me.
“And I can say without fear that “You’ll never walk alone”, after that match, alongside our fans, was the most defining moment of my career with Liverpool. I say this with a heart full of joy: I love this club.”
