As the Jordan Henderson saga continues to rumble on, a personal legacy is in question among Liverpool supporters…
AND there he goes. He won it all, he sold it all.
I don’t think I’ve been so disappointed in a departure since Fernando Torres left for Chelsea. Given the lies he’d been sold by the club back then, that at least made some sense.
Cards on the table. I adored Jordan Henderson. Loved him, but there’ll be thousands who are gleefully rubbing their hands at the sight of his back and £12m.
‘Hooferson’ or, even more insulting given that it’s his dad’s name, ‘Brian’ shouted the keyboard lads, but I was never one of them. I’ve defended him for years.
Without him Trent Alexander-Arnold couldn’t be so far up the pitch, and without Trent there’d be fewer trophies and glorious days.
Jordan Henderson has been a force of good for Liverpool Football Club for a very long time, for me at least, and I’m grateful for his service.
Has.
Of all of them, Henderson seemed to be the soundest. The courage to come out against the owners after the European Super League nonsense, his stance on LGBT+ issues and all-round goodness really shone through. In Jürgen Klopp’s ‘no dickheads’ culture, he was the bastion, the leader.
No longer.
He’s had a week to mull this decision over while the clubs negotiated and doubtless, he’s seen the reaction from many around the Red world, but he’s kept his mouth shut throughout and concentrated on the pound signs. He thought it through and did it anyway.
That speaks to either greediness or years of merely paying lip service to the human rights issues he’s championed for so long.
And I know the arguments. He’s providing for his family. One final swansong with millions of pounds to come before he retires. Yes, I get that, but is it probable that someone who’s been paid 10s of thousands of pounds every week for over a decade can be so concerned about his bank balance?
He could play for free for Sunderland for two years with no hardship at all. He gets a proper farewell and goes back to the club he loves then, but no.
Homer: “You know, Mr Burns, you’re the richest guy I know. Way richer than Lenny.”
Mr Burns: “Oh yes, but I’d trade it all in for a little more.”
He’s trading it all in for a little more. Ethics and all. Krusty the Klown selling pork products.
Ah, but what about Roberto Firmino, Fabinho and Steven Gerrard? Maybe even Sadio Mane now? Why aren’t you angry with them?
I am. Furious. But they’ve never been the poster boy for LGBT+ rights. They’ve never lied to that community. Gerrard, in particular, hasn’t been my concern for close to a decade so, although I’m disappointed with him, he’s not really on my radar.
It’s not so much the going there, it’s the hypocrisy of going there.
Yeah, but we can’t hardly talk about human rights abuses in this country. Look at the state of this place.
According to Amnesty International…
“In March, the Council of Ministers passed a new Personal Status Law, which came into effect in June. The new law, which was not previously codified, enables discrimination against women, including through male guardianship. Only men can be legal guardians under this law, and women must have a male guardian’s permission to marry and are then obliged to obey their husband.
“Moreover, the law does not give women and men equal rights over matters relating to their children in the event of separation. While the mother is automatically granted custody, the father is designated as the child’s legal guardian without due consideration of the best interests of the child.”
Football’s for everyone, right Jordan?
In 2019, a promotional video from Saudi Arabia’s state security agency categorised feminism, homosexuality and atheism as ‘extremist ideas’. The LGBT community is oppressed and, though the state says they’re welcome to visit, they must not indulge in any private acts. That’s as delicate as I can put it.
I have no love for either the UK government or most of the Opposition, but I’d like to think there’s a difference. There is still an issue with discrimination here, but it isn’t codified by law.
Things are far from perfect here, but we can, for the time being at least, protest. The right to do so in Saudi Arabia is not guaranteed.
And let’s forget this nonsense about ‘changing the culture from within’.
On August 9, 2022, Salma al-Shebab was sentenced to 34 years in prison followed by a 34-year travel ban for ‘peaceful Twitter activity in support of women’s rights’ (Amnesty). The original sentence was six years but the authorities took a harsher line for ‘disrupting public order and destabilising the security and stability of the state’.
I can’t see Jordan rocking the boat too much there. Particularly if there’s a ‘non-disparagement’ clause in his contract.
And this is not to say that all Saudis are bad. It’s very important to say that. They have a right to watch football just as much as I do, but you either take a stance when it comes to your own credo or you don’t. Our former captain is not ignorant of these things and is tacitly giving his approval by taking their money.
Jordan Henderson is not responsible for executions, oppression or the curbing of free association and protest, but having a former England and Liverpool captain does wonders for their PR. Jordan Henderson knows that, has thought about it for a week and done it anyway.
But we’ve all got our price. If that £700k per week figure is true, wouldn’t you be tempted?
Adam Smith offered up this analogy on this week’s AFQ Football: “If the Sun offered you £700k to write for them, would you do it?”
Jordan Henderson & Saudi League Money: AFQ Football
If you even have to think about that then your morals are also for sale, and I reckon you’re on a bit less than him.
Of course, no one is in Henderson’s position. My only comparison comes from the other end of the scale.
I freelance from time to time and was once offered a guest spot on a radio show to discuss that week’s games. I accepted and then learned that it was for Kelvin MacKenzie’s Love Sport station. Alright, no one was offering £2.8m per month for my views on Fulham versus Brighton, but it never got any further. Offer what you want. I’d like to think I have a soul.
I seem to be quoting The Wire a lot in these columns, so I hope you forgive me if I remind you that: “A man got to have a code, yo.”
And though this will only be temporary, it’s coloured my view of them all now. Those training videos mean nothing as I’m not sure I can trust any of them, particularly given the acknowledgments to Memphis Depay’s Instagram posts in support of Benjamin Mendy last week. Hendo was the last person I thought capable of shitting on his principles.
But it’ll be changed and I’ll be dragged into the hypocrisy once more. The badge comes first. It always will.
He won it all, but he sold it all for a tarnished legacy. Poacher turned gamekeeper.
It shouldn’t hurt anymore, but it does.
Download The Anfield Wrap’s free app for Liverpool FC podcasts, video and writing all in one place…
“He appears to have absolutely staked his reputation and a lot of what made him be perceived as the person he is, on something that might just be smoke and mirrors.”
“This is deeply embarrassing for Jordan Henderson this, no matter what happens at this point.”
🎥The Bacon Butty pic.twitter.com/QEx5yrAvLU
— The Anfield Wrap (@TheAnfieldWrap) July 18, 2023
at last someone whos not trying to excuse this rubbish,the pudits on talksport make me sick accepting this because they would do the same,they are all now somewhat of a stain on the club,gerrard should never manage liverpool after this as he has already given up on being taken seriously as a manager,they can make all the excuses but they are selling their souls to play sunday league level football
I, too, am gutted. Wonder how he – and Gerrard – will feel after the next round of beheadings, limbs chopped off, another journalist murdered etc by the state they now live and work in.
Having said that, if he’d taken the dollar instead, he’d be living and working for a country that has, and uses, the death penalty, has just passed laws painfully restricting women’s rights and has a frothing religious right trying, and succeeding, in stoking hatred and discrimination against the LGBT+ community. What a world
I agree with most that you write but saying ‘’there is still an issue with discrimination here’ you really don’t do justice to the Met and GMP ( the woman traumatised in front of her child over an unpaid fare, which had actually been paid)and your comment ‘for the time being we can still protest’ the right to protest here is certainly not guaranteed ask the JSO protesters.
I’m really sorry for the choices Henderson has made. But please, don’t hold this country up as a beacon of civilisation because it’s not.
I find this and many other articles so judgemental and unpleasant
Of course it was lip service, He’a fotballer,one who’s safe, unconventional and England’s boy says the right thing, what he thinks he should to apease, he aint the type to investigate and view things with open unwashed mind, just like all the clap the NHS and stuff.
The state sponsored LGQBT agender appears incrediably forceful controlling and indeed narcisstic, many falling over themselves to dance to its tune (ie LFC current badge) scared and treading on eggshells for fear of being cancelled, whch is the dyamic of an abusive relationship.
On the greed thing only someone who has been offered triple what they earn and tax free wages can legitmately throw shade,otherwise its called hating, which will only lead to an uhealthy contactedness, might wish to consider, looking forward to the mad season on the horizon, send him love and nothing but. I know I do.
For someone who claims to dislike opinions that are “judgemental and unpleasant”, your own opinion here contains large chunks of precisely those things.
Your final paragraph claims that “hating” is “unhealthy”, yet your middle paragraph contains a message of hate and loathing to a section of the population who suffer those things regularly and whose right to even exist as human beings is disallowed by the Saudi government.
If anyone is in need of having to consider what they have written on this site, it is absolutely 100% you and not the article author who accurately captures the mood of many of those who are similarly disappointed in Henderson’s choice.
Just to comment on the comment made by “Lucky Despersdo”.
If you seriously think there is a “LGBTQ+ agenda” that is “state sponsored” then may I suggest you stop reading the Daily Mail or the S**?
As a member of the LGBTQ+ Community and a lifelong Red, I am very very disappointed in Jordan. And I echo every single word Karl says.
Forget the fact that the Saudi Pro League is roughly of the same standard as our League Two and that none of their teams would even beat Tranmere, never mind Liverpool or Everton. Saudi Arabia is down there with North Korea and Iran when it comes to its Human Rights record. Yes, this country, under the clown’s circus that calls itself the “government”, has no reason to talk but I seriously doubt even they would resort to beheading, shooting, stoning, flogging or amputating their own citizens on the flimsiest of pretences.
Saudi Arabia does.
It is a regime that murders journalists who are critical of the House of Saud, executed EIGHTY ONE people in a single day – including those convicted when they were CHILDREN, and flogged the journalist Raif Badawi for running a website critical of the regime. LGBTQ+ people can expect to be beheaded, women’s rights are non-existent, and unspeakable atrocities have been committed by the Saudis in Yemen.
Jordan Henderson is financially secure for life. He does not need to enrich himself even further. If he had gone to, say, Sunderland or Brighton or even Rangers, he would have left with everyone’s grateful thanks and best wishes. No, he has spat in the face of all LGBTQ+ people he championed by accepting – and let’s be honest about this – blood money.
I am disgusted.
Well said Karl, as always tbh. I’m left feeling saddened. Like you, I think of Torres as being my watershed moment that forever changed the way I thought of our players. Where my naivety bubble burst. But this team, with Hendo as it’s heart, man alive they are hard to close your heart to. Gutted.
Amazing writing, couldn’t agree more, gutted and dissalusioned with it all. They care more about acused rapists than women or lgbt people.
Regarding the comment about UK gov. Gay marriage is still illegal in Northern Ireland, not too mention within my mums life time being gay was illegal in the UK, punishable by prison and sometimes chemical castration. How do we expect the attitude to change in SA if there’s no change in the society, having more westerners go over there will see a change from within hopefully. Afterall it wasn’t that long ago you couldnt buy alcohol over there..
Whats apparent here, and reading on other LFC websites is the division the issue creates just like the vaccine which of course it is designed to do, focusing on our differences rather than similarities.
The passive aggressive responses directed my way coupled with convenient projections such as hate, ilustrate the contractedness mentioned previously. Sad to stay I am unsurpised, that rather than just also share views on the article so a get a balanced view, would rather take shots in a forceful manner. I stay open hearted breathe deep and find that place of indifference, negotiating the challenging tightrope of not being passive or spineleess but also not getting sucked into the game,
This is exactly how I feel, spot on!
I’ve posted on a different article about how I feel (spoiler alert: turns out I feel a lot) about this, so, basically: yes. Well said.
There are other players for other teams that seem like incredibly sound people, and I’d be really disappointed if they did the same thing, but it wouldn’t hit in quite the same way. I have a little mental list of ‘People I Admire To The Extent That It Would Genuinely Sadden Me If It Turned Out They Were Actually Pr**ks’ and Hendo was very much on that list. I still want to believe, somehow, that there’s more to this decision, something that exempts the person making it from being crossed off.
I had tickets for my first ever match, a pre-season friendly, before this broke, and between this and the Mendy thing I felt like I didn’t want to go anymore. Not as a political stand, but because I felt exactly like you did.
Great article, hits the nail on the head…I was also a huge supporter of Hendo…He was a absolute legend, one of our finest Captains..He was a champion of causes and outspoken about issues. He did have his critics as a player, ignorant Reds getting on his back, moaning when he got the ball, even if he looked up before he played a ball idiots would be on his back…you’ll always get these ” know alls” that wouldn’t understand…He won it all for the Reds…surpassing other Captains that was his fantastic legacy…..Now, what was/ is thinking…so so disappointed with his decision..Gerrard is doing the same.it could be argued but imo its more raw with Hendo, Gerrard fantastic player and Captain but never ” spoke out” or ” Champion causes like Hendo did….He’s let.himself down number one but also all those people whose cases he supported.
Am I the only one who’s not getting myself worked up over this whole scenario? Of course I’m unhappy at the idea of him going to Saudi, but at the same time, I’m looking at it from a purely footballing POV. He’s fast approaching the end of his time with Liverpool, he’s completely aware of that himself, his 1st team game time will be limited, and he’s now more injury prone than in the past, so an offer comes along, play in a novelty League for a short while, earn more on one year, than you’ll near enough get in the Prem.
I also reckon there’s a massive whiff of hypocrisy over this (very coveniently too) a player (an at the very best nothing more than sn above average striker) has just been sold between two prem clubs for a very extortionate amount, this will now push transfer prices up, – and no doubt in turn prices in general for fans – yet the mainstream media (MSM) all concentrate their hand wringing over Henderson choosing to go to Saudi. I just wonder how arsed or upset everyone would be if it was any other player from.another club except Liverpool. Why not the same uproar over Ronaldo, or Benzema, to name just two other high profile players who chose the same option?
Errr our club along with at least half in the prem have owners from a country who killed a million innocent Iraqis encounting plus who knows how many Afghanis etc etc for made up reasons, whose banks have caused mass poverty and death, whose pharmaceutical companies deliberately target poor areas with addictive painkillers, whose agri-chemical companies have ensured that every single human on the planet have toxins in their blood, whose head of health has been caught red handed funding mutation of a virus which spread round the world then pushed a vaccine which is causing mass fatalities and supressed perfectly safe alternatives. I could go on. So you can shove your morality up your jacksie!
One of your sponsors has been guilty of using child labour to make their shoes, another puts known carcinogins in its beauty products. Want to send me the money they’ve paid you?
Very well said, Karl. Henderson has shamelessly sold out. But at least we now know what truly motivates him.