THE BEGINNING OF HEND?
It might not be the most remarkable headline of the day [Football Daily makes ball shape with hands] but the news that Jordan Henderson is closing in on a move to Ajax after apparently ending his contract with Al-Ettifaq will surely stun time travelers who passed through the wormhole last January, for example. But here we are: six months after earning a £12m fee for Liverpool, Hendo is on his way to another European powerhouse who will probably never pay him the £12m. Meanwhile, he played 17 matches in Saudi Arabia, scoring no goals and making four assists, and his salary reached £10 million. As the kids say, Jordan is playing 4D chess here. Or something like that.
However, crossing to Amsterdam via Dammam, some Collateral damage to the Henderson brand. As a long-time advocate for LGBTQ+ rights and a strong supporter of the Premier League’s Rainbow Laces campaign, his decision to take his talents to a country where homosexuality is illegal and punishable by death has achieved something we thought was impossible: a modern footballer had actually achieved. It disappointed us. Liverpool’s LGBTQ+ fans group Kop Outs has questioned whether their former captain “is a true ally”. Jake Daniels, the first active England men’s footballer to emerge in more than 30 years, described Henderson’s Saudi move as a “slap in the face”.
As he ran and signaled in front of four-figure crowds for six months, Henderson tried to field direct questions about what had first attracted him to super-rich Saudi club Al-Ettifaq, as Ms Merton could testify. . In the trainwreck of an interview with the Athletic, he tried to keep a series of conflicting narratives on track – the move wasn’t about money, “you have to feel valued … and money is part of that”. Henderson also claimed to understand the “frustration and anger” of the LGBTQ+ community, while also making the false counterclaim of “having someone there for her.” [my] The views and values in Saudi Arabia are only a positive thing.” Was he still supporting Rainbow Laces? Yes, of course. Would she wear rainbow lace in Saudi Arabia? No, he wouldn’t.
Henderson’s move derailed both his career and his off-field reputation; We’d like to think the boos at Wembley were attacking his hypocrisy rather than his lack of big-match training, but we weren’t born yesterday. Of course, there is another argument to be made: it deserves no more criticism than the dozens of players who jet off to fill their suitcases with riyals without ever voicing their opinions on the plight of the persecuted groups around them. Throughout his ill-fated spell, Henderson maintained that he cared about fans who felt betrayed by his decision, distorting him with painful outbursts of doublespeak. He may try to transfer to Ajax as a result of a crisis of conscience. Henderson, however, is not the only major signee hanging around the departure gate in Riyadh these days. A far more likely motivation is his diminished role in England, the looming Euros and the sudden abundance of flexible hybrid full-backs ready to step into Gareth Southgate’s midfield. You may call us cynical, but modern football has brought us to this point.
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QUOTE OF THE DAY
“This will be a great opportunity. For me it’s a fourth round draw against Manchester United, the biggest club in this country, Europe and the world… I can’t picture that to be honest, they’re incredible names. Just the fact that Manchester United came to Rodney Parade is a great achievement. I don’t know when this will kick in, I’m sure my parents are doing Irish dances at home right now” – Newport County manager and United fan Graham Coughlan reflects on the upcoming FA Cup date at home with Jonny Evans The All-Stars is the biggest game in the club’s history; It’s even bigger than the Cup Winners’ Cup quarter-final in 1981.
FOOTBALL DAILY LETTERS
I’ve been following the equivalent of David Rose’s Fair Play Times (yesterday’s Football Daily letters) for a few years now, dividing time of possession by fouls committed to find out which teams foul the quickest when out of possession. Chelsea and Liverpool have been in the top four for the last three and a half seasons, while Leeds and Brighton also play regularly. At the other end of the scale, West Ham are generally the cleanest team, or at least the slowest at fouling. Crystal Palace are consistently among the fastest to be Before and after Jack Grealish’s departure, he and Aston Villa committed fouls while they had the ball. High possession teams such as Manchester City and Liverpool face the relatively lowest foul frequency, but teams also seem to foul Manchester United quite infrequently. Love, boringly” – Rob Hamilton.
Todd Boehly’s crude and destructive PR display at last weekend’s Chelsea v Fulham game had the men in green jackets standing up in unison behind the dugout, cleaning their teeth and reading books, apparently to promote his new movie Argylle. In response, I encourage Chelsea fans to attend cinemas showing Argylle and stand up together in the auditorium during the film and chant their favorite football chants” – Mick Beeby.
Send your letters to the.boss@theguardian.com. The winner of today’s letter is… Rob Hamilton, who received a copy of Africa Cup of Nations: The History of an Underappreciated Tournament, published by Pitch Publishing. Visit the football booklet here.
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