Curtis Jones credits Inter Milan manager Chivu for convincing him to leave Liverpool in £30m deal

Curtis Jones has opened up on the reasons behind his surprise £30m departure from Liverpool this summer, singling out Inter Milan head coach Cristian Chivu as the driving force that persuaded him to leave his boyhood club after 16 years at Anfield.

The 25-year-old midfielder, who joined Liverpool’s academy at the age of nine and went on to make 228 appearances for the first team, completed a move to the Serie A side during the summer transfer window. It was one of several high-profile exits from Anfield, with Mohamed Salah, Ibrahima Konaté and Andrew Robertson also departing, and Harvey Elliott joining Valencia on loan.

“There’s a reason I came here: the phone calls we had, how the team plays, his tactical ideas, and how he works every single day,” Jones said of Chivu. “It’s the small things he says, things that might seem minor but end up having a massive impact. Plus, he has immense experience and played at the highest level himself. He’s managed the squad brilliantly. He’s ‘one of us,’ and to me, that’s fundamental.”

Jones has made an encouraging start at his new club. He came off the bench in Inter’s narrow victory over Cagliari before being introduced at half-time as the Nerazzurri overturned a 2-0 deficit to defeat Napoli, a result that placed Inter second in the early Serie A standings.

The result also gave Jones cause to push back against perceptions of Italian football. “Some people say Serie A is boring and the Premier League isn’t, but you didn’t see that today,” he said. “There are great coaches here and so much tactics. Today was a beautiful match with plenty of chances, and the coach made several tactical adjustments that helped us win. Italian teams never surrender, it was a real spectacle.”

Settling in off the pitch has been equally straightforward, according to the England international. “I just feel at home with the lads. Since the first day, they’ve been unbelievable and so I can just be myself,” Jones said. “Of course I’ve got a point to prove but I know that if I’m just myself, the lads will like me, the staff and the fans as well.”

Jones scored 22 goals in his 228 appearances for Liverpool across all competitions. He now turns his attention to Inter’s Champions League campaign, which opens against Real Madrid.