2024-03-25 10:38:31
We talk about the difficult season of the former Liverpool leader.
İdman.biz presents an article with a link to footballhd.ru.
The summer of 2023 was an eventful one, largely because Saudi Arabia burst onto the transfer market. The new league, along with new financial opportunities, attracted the attention of many famous football players. Among them was Jordan Henderson, who followed Fabinho’s example. Together, the now former teammates decided to leave Liverpool and test themselves in the new championship.
At the same time, the players put the Reds in a difficult position, who had to urgently look for new midfielders. Henderson’s departure from Liverpool is shrouded in darkness. Reds head coach Jurgen Klopp expressed surprise at Jordan’s decision. The specialist made it clear that he would be happy to continue cooperation with the captain. The player himself stated that everyone at the club wanted him to leave, and he did not want to be a burden.
Be that as it may, the Merseysiders quickly set about rebuilding their midfield and, oddly enough, hit the mark with three newcomers, despite the rush. Liverpool had been looking at Alexis McAllister and Dominik Szoboszlai for a long time, but Wataru Endo became a really urgent option. However, the little-known Japanese international from Stuttgart has become an important player for the Reds.
Henderson went to Saudi Arabia to see Steven Gerrard, who heads Al-Ittifaq. There was something symbolic about seeing two former Liverpool captains reunited in the surging Championship. This collaboration looked potentially interesting. Gerrard failed at Aston Villa, and Henderson was no longer at the full level of Liverpool, although, in principle, he could have spent some time there. Joining these guys was another former Reds player, Georginio Wijnaldum, who also left the Merseysiders under strange circumstances.
It so happened that Henderson helped Liverpool twice. First, Jordan pushed the Reds to rebuild their midfield. Secondly, the 33-year-old midfielder brought the Merseysiders 14 million euros for his transfer. The amount is not that big by today’s standards, but plus 6 million – and you already have 20 million to sign Endo. Henderson himself was determined to help his new team, where he immediately became captain. And already in the first match, Jordan helped Al-Ittifaq beat Al-Nasr without Cristiano Ronaldo, but with Sadio Mane.
Despite a positive start to the season and a good spell on the pitch, Henderson struggled in Saudi Arabia. Former Manchester City player Aymeric Laporte said in an interview that in this country football players are not praised as much as in Europe. The Saudis fulfill their financial obligations, but do not bother with the accommodation of the players and do not deal with other everyday things. It’s not just that in the winter there were rumors that football players who had previously played in Europe wanted to leave Saudi Arabia.
It’s not hard to see why Henderson had a difficult time in the Middle East. Jordan was a strong supporter of minorities when he lived in Liverpool and then moved to a country that is not known for tolerance and respect for human rights. As a result, the Englishman found himself between two fires: in his own country he was disliked, but in a foreign country he was not accepted. All this was complemented by the not-so-best performances of the football player and the mediocre results of Al-Ittifaq.
Henderson has assisted in three straight games and has gone 11 straight games in the Saudi League without scoring. Jordan does not have a direct responsibility to score or assist, but he has previously been renowned for his ability to find teammates with long passes or pass the ball to them. Perhaps the midfielder did not have suitable teammates at Al-Ittifaq, or the environment in which he found himself simply did not suit him. In winter, the media wrote that several star players wanted to leave Saudi Arabia, but only Henderson managed to escape.
There was little chance of seeing Jordan in the Premier League again, but he had good offers from Europe. For some time, Juventus was actively interested in the player, but the matter never came to a transfer. As a result, Henderson ended up at Ajax, and even as a free agent. It is surprising that the Saudis agreed to release the star football player for free. Perhaps Jordan’s departure was facilitated by Gerrard, who at about the same time extended his contract with Al-Ittifaq. The Englishman went to a club that, like him, needed a reboot.
Ajax failed in the first half of the season, so much so that they were close to the relegation zone. There were disagreements and scandals in the club, and the team did little well on the field. Later, the situation stabilized – Ajax rose to 5th place in the Eredivisie standings, but was knocked out of the Conference League at the 1/8 final stage. Henderson also received the captain’s armband in Amsterdam, which may have contributed to his two assists in the last two Eredivisie matches.
However, the question remains: has Henderson become a real strengthening for Ajax? Jordan has been openly criticized for his direct play, too easy passes and reluctance to advance the ball. It is noteworthy that to date Ajax have won only 1 match in the Eredivisie with an Englishman in the lineup. Henderson’s winning percentage in matches this season is just 27%. Jordan is having one of the toughest and most ineffective campaigns of his career. This is a bad sign before the European Championships. The decision to leave Liverpool may have been wrong or hasty, but at least it was good for the Reds.
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