Jordan Henderson joined Al Ettifaq last summer but wants to leave Saudi Arabian club; former Liverpool captain cost in the region of £13m and is reportedly earning a weekly wage of around £350,000; January transfer window closes in England and Italy on Thursday 1 February
Saturday 13 January 2024 17:03, UK
Juventus are considering a loan move for Al Ettifaq midfielder Jordan Henderson, according to Sky in Italy.
The former Liverpool captain wants to leave Al Ettifaq after joining the Saudi club in the summer.
Sky in Italy claim a possible stumbling block in any potential move by Juventus would be the length of the loan deal. Henderson is reportedly hoping for an 18-month agreement, while Juve would only consider a deal until the end of the season.
The 33-year-old cost Al Ettifaq in the region of £13m and they are reported to be paying him a weekly wage of around £350,000.
Results on the pitch have been indifferent, with Al Ettifaq winless in the Saudi Pro League since late October and languishing in eighth place, some 28 points behind leaders Al Hilal.
Sky Sports' Paul Merson on Soccer Saturday:
"That is why he went [for financial reasons], so it has worked out in a way, but why would it [work out]? They are playing in front of 2,000-3,000 people, so the reason you are going over there is for the money in the end. People tell you money helps, but it will not make you happy.
"When you are playing in front of one of the best stadiums in world football at Anfield every other week… people do not look at this, though, they get it in their head and put three zeroes at the end of that and I will go.
"He loves football, he is a football man, I do not know him, but he comes across as one of those men who just loves football. There is a lot of difference between playing in front of 40,000-50,000 to 700 or 30,000.
"He needs that buzz and he is not the only player now, there are a lot of other players you are hearing whispers from now, Roberto Firmino and Karim Benzema saying 'this is not really what we thought it would be like'.
"He has to get back and play football, his carer is short and he needs to get back in my opinion.
"The problem is he would much rather come back to the Premier League surely, otherwise he is just going to another country and he gets there and says, 'this is just for me,' he might. It is still a different country [Italy], a different language, you have to take your wife and kids and are they going to like it?
"You are alright as you're playing every week, you are going away, you are in the team, it is your wife and kids then, you have to find a school, he is 30 years of age so he will probably have kids who are going to school. You have to weigh all these things up.
"Too many times you go, 'I'll take the money' and you do not think of anything else. What I would say is if you are that desperate to come back, take a massive pay cut if you want to play football. Every club would want him, they would be queuing round the corner."
Speaking to The Athletic in September, Jordan Henderson said:
"People will see this club come with loads of money and he's just gone, 'Yeah, I'm going'. When in reality that just wasn't the case at all. People can believe me or not, but in my life and my career, money has never been a motivation. Ever.
"So do I go somewhere to try something new, to grow the game that I love in another country, and grow the league into one of the best in the world? That excites me because I want to grow the sport all over the world. And that got me going, really.
"I think there was always going to be criticism regardless of what I did, whether I stayed, whether I went. So basically I had to make the decision on what was best for me and my family.
"Now, when I was making the decision, the way that I tried to look at it was I felt as though, by myself not going, we can all bury our heads in the sand and criticise different cultures and different countries from afar. But then nothing's going to happen. Nothing's going to change."
Speaking after watching his side knock Arsenal out of the FA Cup to progress to the fourth round, Klopp laughed off the suggestion Liverpool could be a potential destination for Henderson.
"He didn't call me," he said.
"We spoke actually but it was not about that, so really I have nothing to say about that."
The winter transfer window is now open and will close at 11pm in England and midnight in Scotland on Thursday 1 February, 2024.
To ensure harmonisation with the major leagues in Europe, the closing dates were set following discussions with the EFL, DFL, Serie A, LaLiga, and LFP, who will all close their summer and winter windows on 1 September and 1 February respectively.
Keep up to date with all the latest transfer news and rumours in our dedicated Transfer Centre blog on Sky Sports' digital platforms, while you can also catch up with the ins, outs and analysis on Sky Sports News, including daily transfer shows, and listen to our Transfer Talk podcast.
