Fabio Aurelio excited by Liverpool return
Liverpool defender Fabio Aurelio has told of his delight at making a return to the club and has insisted that he is ready to prove himself. The left-sided player left the club after his contract expired in May but after impressing the new coaching set-up and manager Roy Hodgson, he re-signed with the Reds on a two-year deal.
The 30-year-old Brazilian told his club’s official website that he was surprised with the manner in which his first spell at the club ended and was over the moon to sign up to once again appear in front of the Anfield faithful. He said: "It was a strange situation. I didn't really want to leave but it just happened that my contract finished and that was it. So when the opportunity came around to sign again, I was absolutely delighted. My family love it here and we are really settled. When we thought we were going to have to leave, it was really hard. Fortunately we are not in that situation anymore and it's a dream to have the opportunity to work here again.”
Other options
Several options had been available to Aurelio, but he was reluctant to discuss offers that had been on the table from other clubs. He said: "We talked about some other options but as soon as Liverpool contacted me, that was it. I wasn't interested in going abroad and it wouldn't be fair to talk about (offers from) other clubs. The important thing is that I am back here and I am happy. I want to help the team improve."
Aurelio made his second debut for the Reds as a substitute in a 1-0 pre-season friendly defeat against German outfit Borussia Moenchengladbach at the weekend.
Not fully fit
The player added that he was not yet fully fit, but told of his delight at the club’s summer signings of England international Joe Cole and Milan Jovanovic. He said: "I'm not 100 per cent match fit yet because it had been quite a while since I had last played. But while I was on holiday, I tried to work hard and keep myself ticking over. We have made some good additions, like Joe and Milan and we can be very confident about the future."
Aurelio began his career with Sao Paulo in his homeland after coming through the club’s youth system. Between 1997 and 2000, he made 79 appearances and scored four goals for the club in all competitions before making the switch to La Liga side Valencia.
League titles
The defender enjoyed a successful spell with the Spanish side, helping them to their first league title in 31 years in the 2001-02 season before repeating the feat two years later. The 2003-04 season also saw Aurelio win silverware on the European stage after he helped Valencia defeat French side Marseille 2-0 in the UEFA Cup final. The Brazilian made 113 appearances in total for Valencia and scored 13 goals across all competitions.
In 2006, Aurelio moved to Merseyside to link up with his former Valencia manager Rafael Benitez and test himself in the English Premier League. The defender had featured for Liverpool prominently before his contract ran out, having made 110 appearances in total and scoring four times. However, Aurelio said that he still had lots of work to do if he is to continue impressing his new boss and become a fixture in the first team. He said: “I think I have got everything to prove. You always want to show more of yourself, you want to improve and make people happy. I want to do much better than I did in my first four years."
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