Mallorca midfielder Sergi Darder has revealed he rejected an offer from Barcelona out of respect to former membership Espanyol, the place he rose by the youth ranks from the age of 14.
Darder, who performed for Malaga and Lyon in between his two spells at Espanyol, left the membership on the finish of final season after a second relegation within the house of 4 years.
He wound up becoming a member of Mallorca, however it seems that the 29-year-old had the possibility to go to Barcelona that he admits was higher for him financially along with providing a extra aggressive mission.
“I have rejected offers from rival teams to Espanyol so as not to harm them, when they were much more interesting for me, sportingly and economically,” Darder informed Radio Catalunya.
“When you get an offer from Barca, even if you are from Espanyol or Madrid, you get nervous and think about it. But when you think about it coldly, you say ‘it’s impossible’.
“I want it have been one other workforce that performed within the Champions League and aspired to win La Liga. Out of respect for Espanyol, I stated no, although I had the intention of leaving the membership. I might perceive if different individuals took [the offer].”
Barcelona did bring in another experienced La Liga midfielder during the summer in the shape of Oriol Romeu, ironically also once an Espanyol youth player, who returned to his former club following more than a decade at Chelsea, Southampton and latterly Girona.
Mauricio Pochettino once ruled out becoming Barcelona manager due to his affinity with Espanyol from his player career, although the Argentine eventually backtracked on those comments: “I used to be mistaken in the best way I transmitted that it might be not possible sooner or later to educate Barcelona.”
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