Jordan Henderson has admitted that he wouldn’t have felt ‘proper’ taking part in towards Liverpool after he left Anfield through the summer season.
The midfielder had been a Reds participant for 12 years earlier than his departure for Al Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia, the place he’s now taking part in below Steven Gerrard, his predecessor as LFC captain.
The 33-year-old has given a revealing interview to The Athletic wherein he defined that he determined to maneuver on from Merseyside as a result of he felt undesirable by senior figures on the membership.
When requested if he gave consideration to different potential locations other than the workforce for whom he now performs, Henderson replied: “I believe quite a lot of golf equipment would have recognized there was a chance of me leaving as a result of it was speculated over the summer season. I’d love to sit down right here and say that each membership below the solar was wanting me. However the actuality was that they weren’t.
“Liverpool is the place my youngsters had been born; I’ve achieved a lot there. I really like the membership, I really like the followers and the considered taking part in towards them would have been a special problem another way. And it wasn’t one thing that I felt was proper for me.”
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Henderson’s resolution to maneuver to Saudi Arabia has seen him turn into a villain within the eyes of many, with the beforehand outspoken ambassador for LGBTQ+ rights eliciting widespread criticism for relocating to a rustic the place being homosexual is a prison offence.
It’s comprehensible that, after spending nearly all his profession at Liverpool, he’d have discovered it powerful to play towards them (he did so 4 instances for Sunderland earlier than becoming a member of the Reds in 2011), however the irony is that his popularity wouldn’t have soured so badly had he gone to a different Premier League membership.
If he copied former teammates James Milner and Adam Lallana in transferring to Brighton, as an illustration, the 33-year-old would’ve been assured of a heat welcome again to Anfield even in away colors, with followers certain to understand the large service he gave to the Reds.
Sadly, by transferring to the Center East, Henderson has tarnished his legacy within the eyes of many who beforehand idolised him.
It’s an enormous disgrace {that a} man who performed 492 instances for Liverpool (Transfermarkt) and captained them all through one of the thrilling durations within the membership’s historical past, successful nearly each main trophy going, now appears set to be remembered for a fairly much less cerebral act.
Alas, it’s Henderson’s profession and his alternative what to do with it, and he’d have been aware of the implications of becoming a member of Al Ettifaq earlier than signing for them.
#Ep89 of The Empire of the Kop Podcast: EOTK Insider with Neil Jones🎙️
