Birmingham defender Gregory Vignal admits he will always regret quitting Liverpool as he prepares to return to Anfield for Monday's Barclays Premier League clash.
Vignal joined the Reds in 2000 in a £500,000 move from Montpelier but made only a handful of first-team appearances as he struggled to displace John Arne Riise.
The 28-year-old, now available for selection again after a hamstring problem, wishes he had been more patient on Merseyside.
Vignal said: "I should have stayed longer at Liverpool and been patient but, when you are young sometimes you don't realise things.
"I only played a few games at Liverpool, and when you are young, you want to play every game. I should have said `Gregory, be patient, your time will come, you cannot play all the games'.
"When you get older, you realise that with extra experience because Liverpool are a massive club. Do I regret leaving? Yes. I should have never left Liverpool."










Comment 1 - 6 of 6
Vignal am sorry but never mind you are not alone.Owen too is regretin g and time will come when Alonso will give his own testimony.Though it has been done,we do appreciate your acknowledgement.Wish you all the best in your endeavour.We will still respect and cheer you again at Anfield
I think you'll find most Liverpool fans have a somewhat different opinion Gregory.
Also Man U Forever, Birmingham aren't a bigger club than Liverpool - it's just an optical illusion created by the gross tonnage of Steve Bruce's big fat head.
You guys crack me up; Mr Ferguson finally equals our haul of league titles after "just" 23 years in charge and you think you're the kings of English football.
I guess you're going to focus on our European Cup collection next - just think, if he manages to win the next two as quickly as his first two, Ferguson will be able to have one hell of a celebration for his 90th birthday. It took him thirteen years to get to his first Champion's League final and another eight to reach his second, Benitez managed that in his first three seasons. If Rafa is still at Liverpool in 18 years time, we'll be in double figures.
I'm looking forward to playing your lot at Old Trafford this season though. I've already e-mailed the club to suggest that you start with a 3-4-2 formation; lets face it, there's no need to keep forcing Vidic to go through the motions of putting his kit on when he could have a lie-in and be fresh for your next match. In fact I'd have thought just not having him suspended for the next match would be a bonus, although looking at how he's been playing recently I suppose that's open to debate.
All joking aside, best of luck for the season and may the best team win. Something that fans of both our clubs forget at times is that the rivalry between us wouldn't be as intense as it is if we weren't both successful sides with proud histories. You can't acknowledge it without accepting why it's there in the first place.
I thought Birmingham were a bigger club than Liverpoo !!!
A bit tactless really. Tantamount to saying 'I wish I wasn't at Birmingham'. Put it behind you, Gregory, and help Blues become (nearly) as big a club as Liverpool.
Well there we have it, Gregory Vignal now regrets not having the patience to wait for his chance. I have always rated Vignal and if he did stay at Liverpool, he would have been a superstar now.
Not sure if Vignal would ever have achieved a first team place. Nice of him to say though........
C'mon the reds !
Please login to post a comment
Not already a Yahoo! user ? Sign up to get a free Yahoo! Account