‘Very Excited’—Former Liverpool Star Targeting a Return to Europe

A key player of Jürgen Klopp’s golden era at Anfield still feels like he has plenty left to offer.

Fabinho (left) lifted seven trophies during his time with Liverpool. / Visionhaus/Getty Images

Former Liverpool star midfielder Fabinho has been playing in the Saudi Pro League since 2023, but revealed in an interview he’s ready to return to play in Europe, more specifically in La Liga.

Fabinho left Liverpool after five successful seasons where he won it all for the Reds, joining Al Ittihad in the summer of 2023 on a transfer worth £40 million ($51.33 million). The Brazilian has won two trophies in Saudi Arabia, but as his contract reaches its final six months, he couldn’t hide his ambition of ultimately returning to Europe.

“It’s the first time in my career that I reach the end of a contract,” Fabinho said laughing with MARCA. “That doesn’t mean I’m a bad professional, but a club has always come and bought me.

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“So, these last six months will be something new for me, but I’m also not in a hurry to resolve my situation. But I know in the coming weeks I’ll talk to my agent to assess a few options. I’m very happy at Al Ittihad but I have to assess everything.

“I’d also like to return to Europe one day, right now or in the future. I always like to try new things, a league I’ve never played at. Although I’ve already played in La Liga, it was only for 15–20 minutes, so it would be something new too. It’s something that gets me very excited, the prospect of playing in La Liga.”

Fabinho played in Spain’s top-flight back when he was a teenager, making his professional debut in 2012 donning Real Madrid’s white shirt. Although he wasn’t able to establish himself with Los Blancos, Fabinho has nothing but fond memories of his time at the Spanish capital.

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Fabinho: Living Real Madrid Experience Was ‘Incredible’ For Me

Fabinho spent one year as a Real Madrid player. / Helios de la Rubia/Real Madrid/Getty Images

Fabinho played for Real Madrid during the 2012–13 season, making one appearance for Los Blancos’ senior team and another 30 for Real Madrid Castilla. During his time with Real Madrid’s B team, he shared the pitch with players like Nacho Fernández and Raphaël Varane. Despite his stint with Real Madrid being brief, Fabinho still considers that period as a “special” time.

“It was my first season playing professional football,” Fabinho said. “With Castilla, we played in the second division, which was a very good level for me and the team was really good as well. As an experience, it was incredible.

“Living there, immersed in Real Madrid even if it wasn’t the first team, being there at the Ciudad Deportiva, sometimes training with the first team and even making my debut with the first team in La Liga ... it was very special.”

The Brazilian went on to reveal he had a chance to stay with Los Blancos for longer, but a proposal from AS Monaco in the summer of 2013 was to enticing to reject. During his time at Monaco, he was part of the team that won Ligue 1 in 2016–17, still the last league title in the club’s history.

Fabinho has won a title in every league he’s played in across his career, except for La Liga. Now, at 32-years-old, he appears ready to return to Spain to try and change that.

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