Leaving Liverpool was difficult: Xabi Alonso

Madrid: Real Madrid midfielder Xabi Alonso has spoken out over his protracted summer transfer and suggested he felt unwanted at Liverpool.

The Spanish international spent five years at Anfield after Rafa Benitez brought him to the club and is grateful for the chance to play at the English giants. Alonso told Sky Sports News, "It was a very difficult decision for me to make [leaving Liverpool], after five years I feel I have been lucky enough to experience wonderful nights at Anfield." The twenty-seven-year old was keen to praise the fans of the club saying, "To have experienced the support of the best fans in the world, I am very grateful and I will always have them in my mind." Summer speculation had suggested Alonso`s relationship with Benitez had broken down, leading to his departure from Merseyside, but the midfielder insists that he never had any problems with his former manager. "There have been a couple of rumours but I have always said it was simply a professional relationship," he added. "I always tried to do what he asked of me on the pitch and do my talking on the pitch and nothing further than that." Alonso revealed that he didn`t want to leave the club until they tried to offload him last summer in an attempt to raise funds to buy England midfielder Gareth Barry. "Last summer when the club proposed that I may have to be sold to sign new players it was difficult to accept that," he continued. "But I accepted it as a proffesional and that moment changed my mind and maybe from that moment it was a time for a change." Alonso made 199 appearances for Liverpool before joining the revolution at Real in a USD 30 million move. Goal.com