Alvaro Arbeloa thanked Liverpool for making him a "much better player" after completing his move back to Real Madrid last night.
The 26-year-old revealed he set his heart on a return to the Bernabeu as soon as he discovered the Spanish giants were interested in him.
Arbeloa, who made 99 appearances for the Reds after signing for £2.5m from Deportivo La Coruna in January 2007, put the finishing touches on his move after Madrid agreed a £3.5million deal with Reds boss Rafa Benitez.
"Liverpool are a club with an impressive history, with lots of success," he said after completing his medical in Madrid. "In England they are the team with the most titles, so I've already experienced that pressure and I hope that will help me now with this challenge, which is clearly the biggest in my career.
"I think I've become a better footballer and also matured. When you play at a club like Liverpool you have the chance to play with great players, I've also been called up by Spain and we've won the European Championships so in these years I've learned a huge amount.
"It's made me a much better player and I hope to be able to show it, which in the end is the important thing."
Arbeloa is Real's seventh summer signing since Florentino Perez returned to the presidency in June, following in the footsteps of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Karim Benzema, Raul Albiol, Alvaro Negredo and Esteban Granero.
But Arbeloa is no stranger to Madrid, as he spent five years working his way up through the youth ranks before moving to Deportivo in 2006, and then onto Liverpool six months later.
The defender failed to establish himself in the first team during his previous spell at the Bernabeu, making just a couple of senior appearances, so when the chance arose for a second bite at the cherry, Arbeloa admits he was determined to take it.
"Since the door was opened to the possibility of coming here I was hoping for it to happen with all my heart, and I'm very happy to be able to return.
"Not even in your best dreams can you imagine that you are going to be in the Real Madrid first team," he said.
"Moreover, when you leave the club with the feeling of not being able to be in the first team, you know that it's very difficult to return, so for me, when this opportunity presented itself, my first objective was to take it and fortunately I'm here.
"I'm delighted and eager to take this opportunity and get out onto the pitch to train, to play and to enjoy it.
"I think that any kid would take advantage of the chance to come to Real Madrid."
The 26-year-old revealed he set his heart on a return to the Bernabeu as soon as he discovered the Spanish giants were interested in him.
Arbeloa, who made 99 appearances for the Reds after signing for £2.5m from Deportivo La Coruna in January 2007, put the finishing touches on his move after Madrid agreed a £3.5million deal with Reds boss Rafa Benitez.
"Liverpool are a club with an impressive history, with lots of success," he said after completing his medical in Madrid. "In England they are the team with the most titles, so I've already experienced that pressure and I hope that will help me now with this challenge, which is clearly the biggest in my career.
"I think I've become a better footballer and also matured. When you play at a club like Liverpool you have the chance to play with great players, I've also been called up by Spain and we've won the European Championships so in these years I've learned a huge amount.
"It's made me a much better player and I hope to be able to show it, which in the end is the important thing."
Arbeloa is Real's seventh summer signing since Florentino Perez returned to the presidency in June, following in the footsteps of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Karim Benzema, Raul Albiol, Alvaro Negredo and Esteban Granero.
But Arbeloa is no stranger to Madrid, as he spent five years working his way up through the youth ranks before moving to Deportivo in 2006, and then onto Liverpool six months later.
The defender failed to establish himself in the first team during his previous spell at the Bernabeu, making just a couple of senior appearances, so when the chance arose for a second bite at the cherry, Arbeloa admits he was determined to take it.
"Since the door was opened to the possibility of coming here I was hoping for it to happen with all my heart, and I'm very happy to be able to return.
"Not even in your best dreams can you imagine that you are going to be in the Real Madrid first team," he said.
"Moreover, when you leave the club with the feeling of not being able to be in the first team, you know that it's very difficult to return, so for me, when this opportunity presented itself, my first objective was to take it and fortunately I'm here.
"I'm delighted and eager to take this opportunity and get out onto the pitch to train, to play and to enjoy it.
"I think that any kid would take advantage of the chance to come to Real Madrid."
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