Emanuelson happy he waited for Milan call

Urby Emanuelson has revealed there was heavy interest from both Roma and Tottenham before he made his move to AC Milan.

The Dutchman decided to leave Ajax, the club that nurtured his talent, for the San Siro side in 2011, and the versatile midfielder has gone on to cement his place in Massimiliano Allegri’s plans.

However, he has now stated he had the chance to leave the Amsterdam club sooner, but chose to wait for the right opportunity to present itself.

“It was very hard to leave Ajax because they were like a family to me. Because of this, I waited before I left, despite offers from Tottenham and Roma,” Emanuelson told Voetbal International.

“Then Milan came and I decided to try and make the leap. I did well to wait, and I’d advise all young Dutch players to mature a bit before changing clubs.”

The 25-year-old has been used in a variety of positions this season, and voiced his hope that this still will prove useful at international level.

“At Milan I often change roles, playing in different positions depending on the needs of the team,” he said.

“I can do the same for Netherlands and this could be an advantage for me in terms of the European Championships in Poland and Ukraine.”

Emanuelson has been capped 15 times by his nation since his debut in 2006, but is yet to play in a major tournament.