Henderson breaks his silence on leaving Liverpool: “At no point did I feel wanted.”
Jordan Henderson has discussed his move from Liverpool to the Al-Ettifaq of the Saudi Pro League.
In the summer, Jordan Henderson moved from Liverpool to Al-Ettifaq.
Jordan Henderson has opened up about his contentious departure from Liverpool in the summer, confessing that he felt underappreciated there as the team started a summer reconstruction.
The 33-year-old joined Saudi Pro League team Al-Ettifaq in July following 12 years of service with Liverpool. He joined forces with former Reds teammate Steven Gerrard, who now runs Al-Ettifaq, in this move.
Henderson, who was selected for Gareth Southgate’s England team for the upcoming international friendlies against Ukraine, spoke exclusively to The Athletic.Ukraine and Scotland, who returned to preseason after speaking with boss Jurgen Klopp, claimed he had “alarm bells ringing” over his changing standing at Anfield.
Henderson acknowledged as much in an interview with Adam Crafton and David Ornstein. “There were a few things that sent alarm bells ringing,” he said. My friendship with Jurgen is excellent. He was completely frank with me.
“Since the talk was private, I won’t go into depth, but it put me in a position where I knew I wouldn’t be playing as much. I was aware that fresh players will be entering my position.
And if I’m not playing, as everyone, especially the manager, would know, it can be pretty difficult for me, particularly when I’ve been at a club for so long and have captained the team for so long. especially when I consider England to be important. The Euros are approaching. Al-Ettifaq then made contact with the club to inquire about the likelihood of my being able to enter.
“Once more, there was no negative response from the club. I received the impression that the management and the club no longer valued me or wanted me to stay at that point. I anticipated that moment would arrive eventually. I didn’t anticipate it happening now. Thus, I had to concede that.
We wouldn’t be having this talk if one of those folks had told me, “Now we want you to stay. After that, I have to consider my career’s next steps. Although they didn’t force me out of the club or explicitly state that they wanted me to go, I never once felt that they wanted me.
“I’m nearing the end of my career and want to play football for joy. I’d like to play. I don’t want to start games off on the bench and then play for 10 minutes. And I was aware that would affect my ability to play for England.
When questioned about his reasons for joining the Saudi Pro League, which this summer also saw the likes of Neymar Jr. and Karim Benzema sign up, Henderson insisted it was not because of the rumored £700,000 salary he would be receiving in the Gulf nation, but rather because of the project at Al-Ettifaq that made him feel valued.
“That was the most difficult part. People will see this club arrive with a ton of cash, and he will simply leave, saying, “Yeah, I’m going.” When in fact, that was completely untrue.
