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Liverpool goalkeeping coach Xavi Valero has said his return to the club this summer felt like coming home again, 15 years on from his first stint on Merseyside.
Valero was part of Rafael Benitez's coaching team during his tenure at Anfield, but left in 2010 when the Spaniard departed. He followed Benitez to Inter Milan, Chelsea, Napoli, and Real Madrid, before a seven-year spell at West Ham followed.
But, last month, Valero ended called time on his stretch in the capital when Liverpool came knocking once again. In a summer of change in the goalkeeping department, which has seen three players leave and another three arrive, Valero is now heading up a new-look coaching team.
He will be assisted by Colin Stewart, with the pair replacing the outgoing Claudio Taffarel and Fabian Otte.
“It’s amazing to be back. Joining Liverpool is something that I think you are lucky to do once in your lifetime and to me it happened twice,” Valero told the club’s website, speaking in his first major interview since his appointment.
“So, it’s a double reason to be happy for me because I had fantastic years here in the past in my three seasons from 2007 until 2010.
“I always thought it was the most special experience I had as a coach and then I’ve been lucky enough to join again in a different moment of the club, but it still has the same essence and passion.
“It was special then and now it is again. I also have a personal bond with the city because I met my wife in Liverpool and my eldest daughter was born there, so my happiest memories are in Liverpool, on both a personal and professional level. I have a special bond with the city and the club.
“When Liverpool calls you, you just have to say yes. It’s one of those clubs. There are a few of them in the world that when they call you, you have to say yes, and Liverpool is one of them.”
Valero will take on a more senior role than his previous spell at Anfield. He describes himself as a more “experienced” and evolved coach in the 15 years he has been away from Merseyside.
“Obviously, the first-team schedule is so hectic with so many games, so my focus has to be on the first team and Colin’s focus is going to be on the transition goalkeepers and the goalkeepers that we have on loan,” he explained.
Valero has returned to a different club from the one he left in 2010. That was before FSG’s takeover and the myriad of changes the new ownership model has instilled, including a new training ground and an expanded Anfield.
“The club is much bigger, it has grown a lot since I left, but again, there is still that same essence, the same passion and the same targets: high standards, fighting for everything at one of the biggest clubs in the world,” the goalkeeping coach reflected.
“It always felt like coming back home every time I came back with a different club, and Anfield felt like coming back home when I was with the opposition. Now I can be again on the home bench, which is a privilege for me.
“But it’s been good to see at the training ground that many, many different people in different departments are still there from my first time here. It’s a nice feeling, and it feels like home again.”
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