1 day ago
33
Former Liverpool defender Paul Konchesky has revealed he nearly missed out on his Anfield dream move, with previous club Fulham refusing to budge until they secured a replacement. The left-back was desperate to avoid returning to Craven Cottage once he learned of the Reds' interest, eventually following Roy Hodgson to Liverpool in 2010
This was despite the west London outfit's attempts to keep him around with a bumper contract offer - and despite boss Mark Hughes nearly scuppering the defender's ambition. The full-back had been instrumental for Fulham under Hodgson as the Cottagers reached the Europa League final in 2010, featuring in every minute of the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final as they fell just short against Atletico Madrid in the final in Hamburg.
Hodgson's reward for masterminding that campaign was the Liverpool position, with Konchesky amongst his primary summer targets alongside the likes of Joe Cole and Milan Jovanovic heading to Merseyside - though sealing the transfer proved anything but straightforward. "Probably early August I get a call, or my agent calls me and says 'Roy said that if they can do a deal with Fulham, he wants to take you to Liverpool'," Konchesky revealed on the Under the Cosh podcast.
"I'm like 31 [he was 29 - ed.], so I'm thinking, 'f***ing hell, one of the biggest clubs in history, I have to make it happen, it has to happen'. "They didn't probably have a lot of money to spend so he's come for me, if he (Hodgson) had a load of money he might have not come for me, which helped me in one way. But Fulham were being really hard to play with.
"Mark Hughes was the [Fulham] manager [and said] you're not going anywhere, we haven't got anyone to take your place. Until we get someone you're not going anywhere, and it was getting later and later."
Konchesky found himself excluded from Hughes' squad for Fulham's opening two away fixtures, although he featured for the complete 90 minutes at home against Manchester United. With the clock ticking on securing a switch to Liverpool, he decided to take control of the situation and approached the manager in person.
"I went out to knock on Mark Hughes' door and said: 'Listen, you've played for the biggest clubs in the world - Barcelona, Man United - I've got an opportunity to do that so please just let it happen. You've had this opportunity, I've never had it... it's never going to happen in my lifetime again'," Konchesky added.
"He said, 'you're not going anywhere, if we don't get anyone you're not going anywhere, so you're just going to be here until the end of the transfer window'. So I didn't play right up until the 30th of August."
Konchesky insists he remained committed during training sessions whilst awaiting the opportunity to finalise the transfer. A hint of progress emerged as deadline day drew closer, though even then the deal nearly collapsed.
"30th of August, my agent's phoned and been like, 'We've been told we can go and have a medical and talk to them but you're not allowed to sign because they've still not got their player they want'," he added. "So I had my medical in Liverpool - just in the hotel, really - and that night that deal fell through and [I got told] I had to go back.
"I said 'I'm not going back, f*** that, I'm not going'. The next day they ring my agent and say 'right, we've got this...' - it was a Mexican boy they signed (Carlos Salcido). My medical's done and my terms are agreed, all I had to do is sign.
"It's the 31st and it got to about midday and my agent went 'They're going to call us by 2pm', so by 3pm it was done. But it was just weird how it happened - I didn't play and then on the 30th I get told I'm allowed to go and have a medical but still might not be allowed to go. So it was really weird and my head was f***ed and all I wanted to do was go and sign for Liverpool, really."
Ultimately, Konchesky's time at Anfield proved disappointing. His chances became increasingly scarce following Hodgson's dismissal halfway through that debut campaign, and he departed after managing only 15 Premier League outings - though not before seizing that chance to join one of England's footballing powerhouses.
English (US) ·