An emotional Ander Herrera is reduced to tears during our upcoming UTD Podcast when recounting his Manchester United exit in 2019.
The ex-Red sat down with Helen Evans and Sam Homewood at Athletic Club’s San Mames Stadium for an extensive conversation all about his career so far.
Herrera’s unmissable episode will be released in full on Monday at 17:00 GMT, exclusively in the United App, on ManUtd.com and via MUTV.
Ander speaks with a great deal of love towards United and indeed the city of Manchester throughout the recording. He treasures his five seasons as a Red and is proud to have made 189 appearances, scored 20 goals and won four trophies.
The 33-year-old made the difficult decision to leave United back in 2019 and he signed for Paris Saint-Germain, where he spent three seasons in Ligue 1. He is now back in the Basque country playing for his beloved Athletic Club once again.
Fans of our UTD Podcast series will know that no topic is off limits and the subject of Herrera’s departure is discussed in detail. While stressing his continued respect for the club, Ander said he felt his contract situation was mishandled at the time.
And as you can see in the video below, it is still an emotional topic for him…
Watch the moment Ander discusses his United exit and becomes emotional.
When invited to discuss his departure, Herrera opens up:
“To leave, it was difficult because six months before, five months before, I was expecting that offer for me to stay,”he explains.
“I don't want to, it's not the moment to talk bad about anyone and I am not going to do it, but after my third season with the club I expected a little bit more from the club at that time. I got the Player of the Year award by the fans and the club didn't call me that summer to sign a new contract, and they did with other players. That was painful for me, honestly.
“I think I deserved it and they didn't do it. After, the conditions changed because I was not happy with that little moment with the club. People go through the club but the club and the badge stays the same, so I could never say one bad word about the club because I am so, so thankful.
“But that was a little bit painful. At the end of the third season, three titles, Player of the Year, and they didn't call me in the summer so I was feeling a bit down. And after, they called me when I had one year left on the contract and the things, they were not right for me. I fight for the club until the last day, no problem at all, I respected my contract until the last day. But they didn't come at the right moment in my opinion, and in my agent's opinion, and in my family's opinion as well.”
Ander then took a break from recording to regain his composure before finishing what is a powerful podcast that underlines his enduring connection to our club.
A reminder that Herrera’s UTD Podcast will be released in full at 17:00 GMT on Monday, in both audio and video. It will be exclusively available via the United App, ManUtd.com and MUTV for the first 24 hours, before it then released externally via the usual podcast providers.