Former national player Julian Draxler has once again defended his controversial move from Paris Saint-Germain to Qatari club Al-Ahli in a detailed statement.
Julian Draxler didn’t want to beat around the bush for long and quickly got to the point in a post published on the LinkedIn platform. “There was long speculation about my move to Qatar, the last few days and weeks in Paris were very turbulent – and I would have liked a different ending,” wrote the 30-year-old.
However, he “honestly lacked the ultimate conviction” to stay in Europe – or even at PSG, where he would have had another year on his contract. He openly admitted that he ultimately went to Qatar because of the money. He had already made a similar statement to “Bild” at the end of September.
“Of course, the financial aspect also plays an important role for me. I could stand up and say: After twelve years in Europe, all I care about is getting to know a new culture, having a new international experience, with an exciting project in the Arab world world – and exclude the issue of money,” said Draxler, who at the same time argued that the “new financial framework” gave him even more opportunities for his family and “projects outside of the field.”
Draxler can “understand” criticism of the transfer
Draxler added that he could “absolutely understand” the loud criticism of the move to the emirate, which is repeatedly criticized for human rights violations, “but it is my life. I stand by my decision and am glad that we finally made it have found a solution.”
Draxler had not played a sporting role for the French champions for a long time. After a loan to SL Benfica in Portugal, the signs didn’t change last summer: “The alternative at PSG would have been a year without any prospects, which I wanted to avoid at all costs.” .
Julian Draxler was once trained at FC Schalke 04, and in 2015 he made a million-dollar move to VfL Wolfsburg. In 2017 he followed the call of Paris Saint-Germain. He has started two games for Al-Ahli so far, with the midfielder providing two assists.