What Martin Zubimendi did the day after rejecting Liverpool transfer

The morning after the night before and as Liverpool were left licking their wounds after Martin Zubimendi had informed Richard Hughes of his decision to stay put at Real Sociedad, it was business as usual at La Real’s Zubieta Training Ground.

Their La Liga campaign gets underway at home to Rayo Vallecano on Sunday, after their pre-season campaign ended with a 1-1 away at Union Berlin on Friday. Despite the ongoing transfer speculation about his future, Zubimendi travelled to Germany and played in such a game.

It marked his first appearance of pre-season, having only reported back to the club’s training base on Monday after winning Euro 2024 with Spain last month.

All smiles in training, if such uncertainty was a distraction as he pondered his future, he didn’t show it. And it was a similar story on Tuesday in Sociedad’s latest training session.

Noticias de Gipuzkoa reports that Zubimendi was seen laughing and joking in training, following Real Sociedad’s successful charm offensive to keep him at the club. While not evidenced in the club’s latest training video, he was seen with a beaming smile in training on the club’s accompanying thumbnail.

Liverpool had been told unequivocally that Zubimendi wanted to leave Real Sociedad during the transfer window and was expecting to depart for a new club, prompting their pursuit of the Euro 2024 winner in the first place.

Yet they have been left disappointed. And after days of stewing over his future before opting to stay put, Zubimendi is seemingly satisfied with his decision after putting the latest transfer saga behind him.

He would admit his frustration at ongoing speculation about his future during Euro 2024, telling El Diario Vasco, via Estadio Deportivo: “Yes, it bothered me,” he said. “And it even got to the point of distracting me a little from what I had to do”, before reiterating that he had ‘no problem’ continuing to play for La Real this season.

Liverpool’s pursuit ended in disappointment but Zubimendi has already put this latest distraction behind him.