The Dutch midfielder captained the Reds for the last time before he bid an emotional goodbye in front of the fans at Anfield.
In his final game, the 30-year-old captained Liverpool to a 2-0 victory against Crystal Palace and helped the club secure a spot in next year’s Champions League. After the game, he was given a guard of honor and was presented with a Champions Wall plaque.
Klopp was full of praise and admitted it would be tough to see the midfielder go:
“Where can I start? I met this wonderful player for the first time in my living room, in the first moment it clicked with us, he was a very friendly, very smart, very open person. “It’s very emotional for me because I lose a friend, that is how it is, but it’s normal for these kind of things to happen.
“Not only was he always available, 90 per cent of the time he played really, really well. People might not know exactly what I mean by good because sometimes it is not spectacular, but from a young kid who was an offensive 10, a winger at Newcastle and then came here and became such a controlling midfielder is a massive step, and you can only do that when you understand the game really in the right way.”
“I’m fighting against my tears right now “I hoped to play many more years for the club but unfortunately things went different, I think everyone knows in football that anything can happen but the situation right now is that on July 1st I’m not a Liverpool player anymore“.
Wijnaldum said after the match.
Liverpool signed Wijnaldum from Newcastle United in a £25m deal in 2016, His miracle appearance against Barcelona in 2019 was one of his best where he came off the bench to score two late goals that helped the team win the Champions League that season.
In the following year, Liverpool won the Premier League after 30 years, and Wijnaldum was a firm fixture in Liverpool’s midfield that season.
During his spell at Anfield, Wijnaldum played 237 games (18,023 minutes), scored 22 goals and assisted 15 times. He is set to leave as a free agent this summer after serving the club for five years.
