Blaise Matuidi: 'I wanted Juve move'

Matuidi was the subject of prolonged transfer speculation after his France international team-mate Paul Pogba left Juve to join Manchester United in a world-record move.

Published : Sep 04, 2016 18:41 IST

"There was a concrete demand. Yes, I wanted to go at the time. The club decided otherwise and I had to accept it. There was a difficult period because I had a wish that has not been fulfilled."
"There was a concrete demand. Yes, I wanted to go at the time. The club decided otherwise and I had to accept it. There was a difficult period because I had a wish that has not been fulfilled."
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"There was a concrete demand. Yes, I wanted to go at the time. The club decided otherwise and I had to accept it. There was a difficult period because I had a wish that has not been fulfilled."

Blaise Matuidi wished to join Juventus during the transfer window but insists he is happy at Paris Saint-Germain.

Matuidi was the subject of prolonged transfer speculation after his France international team-mate Paul Pogba left Juve to join Manchester United in a world-record move.

The 29-year-old midfielder told TF1's Telefoot programme that an offer was on the table from the Serie A champion and he was disappointed to see it rejected by PSG - echoing claims made by his agent Mino Raiola.

"There was a concrete demand. Yes, I wanted to go at the time," Matuidi said.

"The club decided otherwise and I had to accept it. There was a difficult period because I had a wish that has not been fulfilled."

Nevertheless, Matuidi is looking forward to the season ahead at the Parc des Princes under new boss Unai Emery.

"I'm not unhappy at PSG, far from it," he added. "There is a new coach and I know he trusts me."

Matuidi's international colleague Antoine Griezmann is unlikely to be joining him at PSG any time soon.

Griezmann claimed the Golden Boot as the star of Les Bleus' run to the final of EURO 2016 and he told L'Equipe he sought assurances his Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone was not going to take the vacancy now filled by Emery when Laurent Blanc left the French capital.

The 25-year-old signed a new contract in June, tying him to last season's Champions League finalists until 2021 and he is happy to remain under Simeone's guidance.

"For now, [PSG] is not my objective," he said.

"We talked about the coach, that he would perhaps go to Paris. I called before renewing, it was important to me.

"He confirmed that he would remain. I have many things to learn with him."

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