Liverpool nice Jordan Henderson heads to Saudi Arabia to hitch Al-Ettifaq

LIVERPOOL, England — Weeks after luring Liverpool nice Steven Gerrard to hitch as supervisor, Saudi Arabian soccer membership Al-Ettifaq signed Jordan Henderson on Thursday.

The England worldwide, who was captain of Liverpool when the membership received the Premier League and Champions League titles, is the most recent star to move to the oil-rich kingdom. He signed a three-year contract and can reportedly earn $900,000 per week.

Liverpool confirmed Henderson’s switch to Al-Ettifaq and famous that he “lifted eight trophies, all but one of which as club captain” throughout his 12-year spell at Anfield.

The Saudi league hopes to boost the profile of soccer within the nation. Cristiano Ronaldo moved to Al-Nassr in December and has been adopted by stars like Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kante and Roberto Firmino through the offseason.

Henderson received each main membership honor throughout his time at Liverpool, together with the Champions League in 2019 and the Premier League title a 12 months later. He nonetheless had two years on his contract, however his transfer comes as Liverpool supervisor Jurgen Klopp overhauls his midfield.

“We will miss you, you know that. You will miss us, I know that,” Klopp mentioned in a video posted on-line. “But it’s life, and it’s not forever. It’s just a goodbye.”

James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have all left the membership, whereas Fabio Carvalho has joined Leipzig on a season-long mortgage.

Liverpool has signed Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai through the switch window and is anticipated so as to add one other midfielder forward of the brand new season.

Klopp’s midfield revamp comes after the membership endured a disappointing marketing campaign final season, which noticed it miss out on the Champions League for the primary time in seven years and fail to win a trophy.

The transfer to Saudi Arabia by an admired participant who has been a robust ally of LGBTQ+ followers upset the Liverpool Football Club Supporters Board, which famous Henderson had “stood out as a principled footballer.”

“We are therefore very disappointed and disheartened by his decision and the hurt and division it has created,” the fan group mentioned in an announcement.

Saudi Arabia has sought lately to purchase its manner into worldwide sports. Besides Ronaldo, whose contract reportedly earns him as much as $200 million a 12 months, Saudi-funded LIV Golf has shaken up skilled golf.

The strikes are a part of efforts by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to leverage the dominion’s oil wealth to supply new jobs and alternatives for Saudi Arabia’s youth. However, critics have dismissed the efforts as “sportswashing,” trying to leverage skilled sports to wash up the dominion’s picture because it stays one of many world’s high executioners and waging a yearslong struggle in Yemen.