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Jordan Henderson spotted at Liverpool training ground in surprise return
Former Liverpool skipper Jordan Henderson made a surprise return to the club.
Jordan Henderson has been recently spotted at the Liverpool training ground in a shock return to the Premier League club. Henderson left Liverpool for Saudi Arabia last year, before cutting his time in the Middle East short and signing for Ajax during the January transfer window.
Unless they are able to beat Manchester City and Arsenal to the title this season, Henderson’s status as Liverpool’s only league-winning captain of the Premier League era will remain intact. And as his former side gear up for a helter-skelter run-in, the Englishman was spotted at Liverpool’s training ground.
As per a report by The Daily Mail, Henderson was at Melwood to take part in an intense one-on-one fitness session. The midfielder was believed to have been spotted by a group of Irish children, who were visiting the Premier League side’s training base for an exhibition match with one of Liverpool’s youth teams.
It comes as somewhat of a shock given Henderson - who played 492 times for Liverpool - left Anfield under unceremonious circumstances last summer. Cutting short his 12-year stay with the club, the ex-Sunderland man penned a £12million move to Al-Ettifaq. Henderson was lambasted for the decision, as he joined a club in a country where homosexuality is illegal.
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Unless they are able to beat Manchester City and Arsenal to the title this season, Henderson’s status as Liverpool’s only league-winning captain of the Premier League era will remain intact. And as his former side gear up for a helter-skelter run-in, the Englishman was spotted at Liverpool’s training ground.
As per a report by The Daily Mail, Henderson was at Melwood to take part in an intense one-on-one fitness session. The midfielder was believed to have been spotted by a group of Irish children, who were visiting the Premier League side’s training base for an exhibition match with one of Liverpool’s youth teams.
It comes as somewhat of a shock given Henderson - who played 492 times for Liverpool - left Anfield under unceremonious circumstances last summer. Cutting short his 12-year stay with the club, the ex-Sunderland man penned a £12million move to Al-Ettifaq. Henderson was lambasted for the decision, as he joined a club in a country where homosexuality is illegal.
But, his stint in Saudi Arabia would last just six months, with Henderson ditching the Pro League project in favour of a return to Europe. Since joining Ajax, the England international has featured nine times for the Dutch outfit, starting just six Eredivisie matches. However, Henderson has been out injured since late March, with the 33-year-old now facing a race against time to be fully fit and match sharp for the European Championships.
Despite his difficult past year, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp retained his respect for Henderson, accusing people of being too ‘critical’ after he moved to Saudi Arabia. Speaking in January 2024, the German said: “I’m happy for him as it looks like he is happy and that is the most important thing to me. From time to time, I forget I actually don’t read these kind of stories but when it’s not about us I read a bit.
“People are really critical of Hendo about the move, first there and now coming back. I don’t know how we dare, always judging these kind of things. We have one life and we have to make decisions and sometimes our decisions are perfect in the first case and sometimes it is different after you made them."
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Klopp added: “He was there and it was one hundred per cent an interesting experience. I spoke to him and 99 per cent of football things there were absolutely fine. It is the start of something and it is not like it is here – imagine it would immediately be like that.
“There are many things to develop in the future but [he was] never really critical or saying ‘It’s not possible that that’s not there’. But then he thought it is better for him and the family to come back to Europe and now he is at Ajax Amsterdam, a sensational club in a difficult moment.”