Marouane Fellaini has no regrets about quitting Manchester United for a new career in China and believes he left Old Trafford as a 'respected player'.
The big Belgian midfielder joined Shandong Luneng at the start of this month in a £10.4million deal, ending a five-and-a-half-year stay at United.
After watching his new club beat Hanoi in the Asian Champions League from the stands on Tuesday with his twin brother Mansour, Fellaini was asked how happy he was with the move on a scale of one to 10.
Marouane Fellaini has no regrets about quitting Manchester United for a new career in China
'Er, 10 out of 10. Isn't that clear?' he replied. 'I went to Shandong Luneng now because they were interested for years already. And I felt ready for a new challenge, a new culture, a new life.
'Okay, I'm only 31 years old. But I signed for three years. Afterwards I'm 34, then it would be too late to go to China.
'I could have joined a top European club and been important there for two more years, that would have been no problem. But after 10 years and 350 games in England, I felt ready for this step. I'm happy with my choice.
'I'm already a professional for more than 12 years and everything went fine. I made my own choices and don't regret anything. I played at Standard (Liege), the biggest club in Belgium and won titles there. I went as a record transfer to the Premier League and opened doors to England for other Belgian players.
'At Everton I did well and at United I won some cups and a Europa League. The only thing missing is a Premier League title, that's true.
'But I don't dream anymore about a comeback to European top football. But maybe a comeback to Belgium, why not?'
The Belgian midfielder joined Shandong Luneng at the start of this month in £10.4million deal
Fellaini only signed a new contract at United in June but almost doubled his earnings by agreeing a £235,000-a-week deal in China. However, he denied that his move to Shandong was driven by money.
'Not me,' he told Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad. 'I see this as a challenge at a club that has it all. Literally. You should see our medical and technical facilities. I love being
