Adrien Rabiot brushes off ‘downgrade’ criticism and praises Marseille’s ‘ambition’ | OneFootball

Adrien Rabiot (29) has brushed off the criticism that his arrival at Olympique de Marseille is a downgrade after leaving Juventus at the start of July.

The France international had been linked throughout the summer with a move to the Premier League with clubs like Manchester United, Liverpool, and Arsenal all thought to have made contact with the player at some point during the transfer window.

However, while Rabiot’s priority was reportedly to play in England, a move to one of the giants of the English game never materialised with United targeting Manuel Ugarte and Arsenal instead picking up Mikel Merino. Rabiot was also said to be provided with a means to stay in Italy with AC Milan offering him a lucrative contract and the prospect of playing Champions League football, however, the midfielder decided against joining the Rossoneri.

Instead, the France international would make significant financial cuts to join Marseille after he was convinced by the vision of the club. However, Rabiot was quick to dismiss criticism over this move in his first press conference as a Marseille player, “My arrival here is a downgrade? That’s not very nice for Marseille. The project here is very ambitious, and the people at the club are working well.”

GFFN | Nick Hartland