A nine-year story ended quietly. Andy Robertson left Liverpool on a free transfer and from July 1 is a Tottenham player - no compensation, no negotiation over a fee, just a signature and a new shirt. For a player who won the Premier League twice with the club, the Champions League, the FA Cup and two League Cups, leaving without a single euro in compensation says everything about how football treats those who gave it the most.

The numbers behind him are hard to ignore: 378 appearances for Liverpool, 14 goals and 69 assists from a position from which numbers are rarely expected. Last season he made 36 appearances in all competitions, but started only 11 league games - the club was already looking for a younger left-back, and Robertson read the signal before anyone said it out loud to him.

At Tottenham, Roberto De Zerbi awaits him, and he didn't hide his satisfaction. The coach described him as "a player he's admired for years" and spoke of the experience and winner's mentality he brings into the locker room. Translated from coach-speak: they need someone who knows how trophies are won, because they themselves haven't won any in a long time.

For Balkan fans who follow the Premier League, this is one of those transfers that look small on paper but weigh more in the locker room than on the pitch. Robertson is no longer 25 and everyone knows it. But the question isn't how much he runs, it's how much faster the others around him will run when they see what someone looks like who has been where they want to get to.