Xabi Alonso has commented on his three football loves – Real Sociedad, Real Madrid and Liverpool.
The midfielder came through the academy at Anoeta, before leaving to join the Premier League side in 2004.
The Spain international has since gone on to become one of the lynchpins of the Los Blancos side, and has praised all three clubs in an interview with Canal +.
“I can’t say that I’m a born-and-bred madridista because I’m not,” he told the station.
“My club has always been Real Sociedad, the same as my wife, my family. Once I began be interested in football, I started going to Anoeta every Sunday to watch La Real.
“I’m an adopted madridista really. Madridísmo entices you in; the more you experience it and start to understand it.
“Liverpool were very clear and sure about what they wanted when they first put themselves in contact with me. [Rafa] Benítez pushed for them to sign me and phoned me to explain exactly what they wanted from me.
“And it was the moment when I needed to take another step in my career, to experience something new and to grow as a person.
“Anfield makes a huge impression on you, it motivates you – it’s a place with a lot of charm and for me, it’s one of the temples of football – there aren’t many but Anfield is one of them.
“It’s a no frills stadium but it’s got a lot of soul.”
The veteran went on to reveal the difficulties of playing for Madrid under Jose Mourinho.
“Mourinho arrived at Madrid with a great reputation, with a lot of prestige. Madrid is a club which you have to respect right from the very start.
“As a person, Mourinho is very demanding – he is demanding with himself and demanding with the players. There were problems in his final year – there were some conflicts between individuals, which had repercussions on the dynamic of the team as a whole.”
