After spending 12 years with Liverpool, Jordan Henderson has joined Saudi Pro League club Al-Ettifaq for a transfer fee of £12 million. He has signed a three-year contract with the club.
Although he initially joined the Liverpool squad during their pre-season training camp in Germany, Henderson was excluded from the team that played a friendly against Karlsruher last week. This decision was made to give him the necessary time to finalize his move to Al-Ettifaq.
As revealed by Fabzirio Romano, the England international has now joined the Middle Eastern club after a long tenure at Anfield, during which he contributed to the club’s triumph in eight trophies since joining from Sunderland in 2011.
Interestingly, Henderson will reunite with his former Liverpool teammate, Steven Gerrard, who is currently managing Al-Ettifaq. The pair had played together at Anfield for three years.
Before making the decision to join Al-Ettifaq, the midfielder held discussions with the manager, Jurgen Klopp, to clarify his potential playing time for the upcoming season. Following these conversations, he opted to embark on a new chapter in his career in the Middle East.
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The Reds have made notable midfield signings this summer, including Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton & Hove Albion and Dominik Szoboszlai from RB Leipzig. As a result, Henderson’s position in the team has been affected, pushing him down the pecking order.
Liverpool are still on the lookout for more midfielders and Southampton’s Romeo Lavia is being considered as a potential replacement for Fabinho, who is also making a move to the Saudi Pro League.
There are speculations that Thiago Alcantara may also leave Liverpool for the Gulf nation. Despite his potential move, Henderson is determined to continue representing the England national team and has discussed this with manager Gareth Southgate.
While Southgate hasn’t made any promises, he hasn’t ruled out Henderson’s chances of featuring in the squad for the 2024 European Championship.
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However, given the current standard of the Saudi Pro League, it appears unlikely that Henderson will be considered for the England national team if he moves to the Middle East.
