PSG still wondering where to play Wijnaldum

Georginio Wijnaldum left Liverpool to join PSG last summer but he hasn't settled into the side - partly because he is a player who needs freedom to roam.

Georginio Wijnaldum was at the centre of one of the transfer sagas of last summer. His contract at Liverpool was due to run out in June 2021 and in spite of Klopp's desire for him to renew terms, the player ended up leaving as a free agent. Initially, it appeared that he had a deal in place with Barcelona, with Ronald Koeman eager to enroll him into his squad. Then Paris Saint-Germain appeared on the scene...

The Dutch midfielder was swayed by a more lucrative offer to join PSG and decided to move to Paris rather than Barcelona, where, little did he know then, the situation was about to take a turn for the worse.

A physically strong midfielder with stamina, good going forward and good in the air - all of those  qualities makes Wijnaldum the ideal player to fill the gap between PSG's holding midfielder (Gueye) and creative playmaker (Verratti). But in football, two plus two doesn't always make four.

The critics didn't wait long to give their verdict and apart from the odd, isolated decent performance, Wijnaldum has looked a shadow of the player he was at Anfield. Between Ligue 1, the Champions League and the two domestic Cups, he has featured 14 times in the starting line-up, completing the full 90 minutes in just six of those games. 

Newcastle dreaming of Gini

With the winter transfer window open and the player low on self-confidence, there is a possibility that he could be heading back to the Premier League. Newcastle are keen to take him on loan for the remainder of the season and some reports claim that Everton have similar ideas although it would be difficult to see him going to Goodison considering his past. His performance in PSG's last game against Olympique Lyon suggests that a six-month loan might not be a bad option. in six months, Wijnaldum has gone from rejecting Barça to being a flop in Paris.

Former PSG player Vikash Dhorasoo, who now writes for L'Équipe explained his theory about why Gini has yet to get into his groove under Pochettino: "The thing with Wijnaldum is that we don't really know where is the best position to play him - it's hardly surprising because even with the Dutch national team he is a player who needs a certain amount of freedom. It's difficult to find a position which suits him, although I think he still has a place somewhere at PSG". With the Champions League tie against Real Madrid just over a month away, PSG still don't know where to field one of their star signings of last summer.