Radamel Falcao admits he knew 'after just four months' that his spell at Atletico Madrid would not last long.
The Colombian enjoyed two prolific years at Vicente Calderon before making an ill-fated switch to Monaco last summer, and the striker – now at Manchester United – hinted that the move to Ligue 1 did not entirely respect his wishes.
"I knew it was very difficult to stay [at Atleti] because of the [bad] economic times they faced," he told Libero.
"There was always talk that they had to sell players at the end of each season, so I quickly realised this. After just four months, I knew I wouldn't be there for long…
"No footballer is a master of his fate. Sometimes I laugh when people ask me why I didn't go 'here' or 'there', as if a player decides where to work.
"I would say to some journalists, 'why don't you work for CNN or ESPN?' It's the same in football. Very rarely do you have the choice of going to one team or another.
"I've been in many situations where I couldn't get what I wanted. I'd want to go somewhere and eventually be forced to join someone else.
"I enjoyed everywhere I've been in each stage of my life. Beyond that, I've made something of my career.
"Perhaps the greatest moments of my career were in Europe with both Porto and Atletico Madrid. I'm very proud of everything I achieved with them."
