Morgan Schneiderlin claims that he told Southampton he was being “treated like cattle” after he was refused a move to Tottenham Hotspur.
Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino left Southampton this summer to join Spurs and followed the likes of Adam Lallana, Rickie Lambert, Callum Chambers and more out of St. Mary’s.
However, Schneiderlin was told he was not allowed to follow his former boss and rather – remain at the club.
“Was the meeting with Southampton officials on July 29 tense? Yes,” Schneiderlin told France Football.“In the months building up to it, there was interest from clubs – three clubs and Tottenham were among them.
“Since February/March, my agents and I had talked with Southampton about a possible departure. The club always told me they would sell for the right price.
“My agents and I went to that meeting on July 29 in a peaceful state of mind, with exciting propositions. To me, with my six years at Southampton and everything I had given to the club, everything should have been sorted that day.
“I told them I signed for a project that was supposed to keep the best elements in order to go higher. Before that meeting, [Adam] Lallana, [Dejan] Lovren, [Rickie] Lambert, Luke Shaw and [Calum] Chambers all left. I said to myself: ‘This is not the same situation, this is not possible. What are they doing?’ At that moment, Southampton hadn’t signed anyone.
“Chambers signed for Arsenal the day before our meeting and the club saw the fans getting mad. They thought: ‘If Morgan leaves the stadium will be burnt’. So they told us: ‘Morgan is not for sale, we won’t listen to anything. That is the decision and there is nothing more to say’.”
The French midfielder admits he was ‘angry’ and says that he defended his interests during several meetings.
“It was a real shock to me,” he added. “Of course I was angry. I thought: ‘I just played in the World Cup after two good seasons in the Premier League. I never say anything, but I can’t stay in a team that plays for survival. I need to reach a new level’. So I told them: ‘You don’t respect me and you don’t respect your words, you treat me like cattle’. They defended their interests and I defended mine.”