While Jordan Henderson received quite a bit of criticism for his move to Saudi Arabia, the player himself probably was not expecting the second wave of backlash that arrived as a result of his interview with The Athletic last week. The former Liverpool captain had a rather strange sit down with the publication, one that saw him lay out his motivations for his transfer to Al-Ettifaq.
In it, he would claim that his decision was not motivated by money, but instead by the fact that he did not feel wanted at Anfield. He would also face questions about moving to a country where homosexuality illegal despite having previously been a vocal supporter of LGBTQ+ causes, before questioning the negative reputations of both Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
In short, the whole thing did not go down well.
Former Liverpool teammate questions Saudi motivations
Whether Jordan Henderson wants to admit it in public or not, there is little doubt that money was a driving factor in his decision. Supporters would probably prefer hearing that admission as opposed to what he served during this interview.
Despite his claims, it seems few people are buying the player's claims. That includes one of his former teammates.
Speaking to Ggrecon, ex-Liverpool defender Glen Johnson said that he had no doubt that money was a 'major factor' in Henderson's move to Saudi Arabia.
Bloody hell, of course the money was a major factor.
He’s not gone there for the standard of football and if it wasn’t about money, then he would have gone somewhere else. James Milner moved to Brighton at 37 years of age, so there would have been many clubs that would have wanted Jordan this summer in Europe.
However, Al-Ettifaq wanted him and paid him an absolute fortune so you can’t blame him for going, but I do believe that money was a huge, huge motivator.
Jordan Henderson was part of England's squad for the most recent international break, a move that has resulted in plenty of criticism for Gareth Southgate.
The player himself has now returned to Saudi Arabia, where he will prepare for a game against Abha this weekend.
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