I no longer felt wanted at Liverpool — Jordan Henderson

Former Liverpool captain, Jordan Henderson has broken his silence about his untimely exit from Merseyside this summer.

In a move that faced a lot of criticism over Jordan Henderson‘s staunch support for the LGBTQ rights movement, the former Sunderland star moved to Saudi Arabian club, Al-Ettifaq the minute the opportunity presented itself.

In a recent interview with The Athletic, the Champions League winner revealed a move to Saudi Arabia wasn’t as simple or as complicated as many thought.

According to Jordan Henderson, it was a move fostered by necessity, as he got an incline that he was no longer wanted by the club or by manager, Jurgen Klopp.

The former Reds captain revealed that in his private conversation with the Liverpool boss, he wasn’t guaranteed playing time going into the new season, with new arrivals coming into the club in the likes of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboslai at the time.

In his interview with Adam Crafton & David Ornstein, both of The Athletic, Jordan Henderson denied the consistent criticism of moving to Saudi Arabia for the money.

According to the 33-year-old, the move was to secure his place in the England set up ahead of the Euros, something that may not have been possible with Liverpool.

“There were a few things that sent alarm bells ringing. I’ve got a very good relationship with Jürgen. He was very honest with me.

“I won’t go into detail about the conversation because it’s private, but it put me in a position where I knew that I wasn’t going to be playing as much. I knew there were going to be new players coming in my position.

“And if I’m not playing, as anybody will know, especially the manager, that can be quite difficult for me and especially when I’ve been at a club for so long, I’ve captained the team for so long. Especially when England’s a big thing for me. You’ve got the Euros coming up.

Speaking of the opportunity that presented itself in Al-Ettifaq, Henderson said;

“And then there was an approach from Al-Ettifaq to the club to see if it would be possible for me to go there.

“The reaction from the club again wasn’t to say no. At that moment I felt as though my value or the want for me to stay, with the manager and within the club, maybe it had shifted.

The former captain in the interview, makes it clear that he knew his days with the club will be numbered at a certain point, but never considered it to come up so sudden based on how Liverpool treated his potential exit.

“I knew that time would come at some point. I didn’t think it would be now. And I had to accept that.

“I’ve got very good relationships with Jurgen, with the owners of the club. That’ll be forever. What we’ve achieved together in the past 12 years has been incredible. But at the same time, it was hard for me to take that.

“If one of those people said to me, “Now we want you to stay”, then we wouldn’t be having this conversation. And I have to then think about what’s next for me in my career.

The England international however still goes on to clarify that despite his exit from Liverpool, he does not hold grievances towards the club, neither was he forced out by any party.

“Now, that’s not to say that they forced me out of the club or they were saying they wanted me to leave but at no point did I feel wanted by the club or anyone to stay.”