Georginio Wijnaldum refused to become a winger | OneFootball

Georginio Wijnaldum may be as versatile as they come, but he has always known that he’s strongest in the centre of the park.

Dutch newspaper AD recently created a graphic entitled ‘Centipede Wijnaldum’ which showcases how the 28-year-old has pretty much played every single position, apart from goalkeeper, since his days at the Sparta Rotterdam academy.

Since he was a child, Wijnaldum had to endure persistent doubt from others but ended up having the last laugh as one of Liverpool’s primary options at centre-midfield.

The midfielder recently celebrated 50 caps with the Dutch national team and told the Liverpool website that he knew what he wanted to be all along.

“People were trying to get me off thinking that I’m a midfielder, and trying to put in my head that I was a winger,” Wijnaldum remembers.

“There were loads of managers who said: ‘You have to concentrate on being a winger because you have more potential there.’

“But I was like: ‘You can say what you want, but I’m a midfielder and I know what’s the best for me.’

“So I just focused on midfield, and look where I am today. I was full of confidence in myself that I would reach the top or be a professional player as a midfielder.”

Wijnaldum is closing in on 450 professional appearances at the senior level, which currently includes 108 games for Liverpool.