10 Players Who Probably Regret Leaving Liverpool‏

9. Fábio Aurélio

Peter Byrne/PA Archive/Press Association ImagesPeter Byrne/PA Archive/Press Association ImagesA member of the Benitez faithful who was coaxed to Merseyside by the chance to play under his former Valencia manager (whose 2002 La Liga cup winning team he was a part of), Fábio Aurélio signed for Liverpool on a Bosman free transfer in 2006, becoming the first Brazilian to play for the team. And play the defender did, setting up memorable assists for Peter Crouch and Daniel Agger in a 4€“1 win over Arsenal. Unfortunately Aurélio too suffered an achilles-related injury and sat the next season out. Injury blighted much of Aurélio's tenure at Anfield but when he was match fit he was the left back of choice, scoring absolute smashes against Portsmouth and Man United in the league. Despite frequently being in and out of the squad he stayed on for Benitez, Hodgson and Dalglish's reigns in the manager's seat and played in some of the biggest games in those seasons. Alas, Fábio Aurélio's story is one of could-have-beens (or should-have-beens), as his constant sidelining due to injury meant that he didn't choose to pursue a renewal of his contract in 2012 and instead decided, like Benayoun, to head home and play for Brazilian side Grêmio. However he suffered a knee ligament rupture, worse than any of his Liverpool injuries, and barely played a single match for the squad before announcing his retirement from football in April of this year. To be honest he might regret playing the sport at all, regardless of who for.
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Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/