'I was a guinea pig' - Figo speaks on transfer from Barcelona to Real Madrid
FT Desk
- 15 Oct 2022 09:40 CDT
- 3 min read
Former Barcelona and Real Madrid ace Luis Figo has admitted that his historic transfer between the two clubs took a huge toll on him personally.
Figo was an idol at Camp Nou when in 2000 he made the earth-shattering decision to move to their arch-rivals in the Spanish capital.
The transfer netted Barca a then-record €60 million fee, but made the former Portugal international a hate figure in Catalunya, especially when Madrid visited to take on their adversaries in the Clasico - Figo was famously targeted with a pig's head while attempting to take a corner in one edition of the clash.
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Figo enjoyed a glittering career at both club and international level and was considered one of the finest players of his generation.
During his spells at Barca and Madrid he lifted La Liga no fewer than four times and helped the latter to victory in the 2001-02 Champions League final.
The playmaker went on to lead Inter to four consecutive Serie A titles after leaving Madrid and was also a key part of the Portugal side which battled to the semi-finals of the 2006 World Cup, their best performance in the competition for 40 years.
In spite of that fine track record, though, he acknowledges that the controversy of his mega-transfer and galactico status is what lives on in the memory.
Figo on infamous Clasico switch
"I was a guinea pig," Figo explained to the Guardian in reference to his move across La Liga's great divide.
“I’d like more value given to my whole career than one episode that marks an age and altered the market, the philosophy of football."
Figo continued to detail the fall-out from his Barca exit, which included losing contact with many friends upset with his actions.
“Maybe it was good because I thought they were friends and they weren’t. You realise," he added.
"When it happened, they no longer want to appear with you because of how it looks [in Barcelona].
“I had everything in Barcelona, but you think: ‘It’s not like I’m going to a second-rate club.’
" If it hadn’t been Madrid, maybe I wouldn’t have gone. It’s a challenge, a decision based on feeling valued, convincing me I was going to be an extremely important piece. It could have been a cagada, a cock-up, but it wasn’t, thank God."
