Steven Gerrard reveals thoughts on ex-Liverpool captain's mid-season transfer exit from Al-Ettifaq

Steven Gerrard has revealed he was ‘disappointed’ when Jordan Henderson decided to leave Al-Ettifaq last season.

The former Liverpool skipper joined the Saudi Pro League in the summer of 2023 and went on to captain the side until January. He made 19 appearances across that time but chose to terminate his deal and move to Ajax for the second half of the campaign. Gerrard’s side finished seventh in the league and reached the Round of 16 in the King Cup, led by former Celtic forward Moussa Dembele who netted 11 in all competitions.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with the Telegraph, he revealed that he respected Henderson’s decision to leave but was ultimately disappointed to lose his skipper. “I respected his decision because I love him as a guy, I love him as a player and I have nothing but ultimate respect for him,” Gerrard says.

“I was disappointed. Any manager who loses his captain during the season is not ideal and I told Jordan that. But if someone is not settled. If someone has some family things that are affecting him. If someone has got different outside goals or opportunities, like England for example, then I have to respect that and understand it. And I do. But was I disappointed? Of course I was.”

He even tried to persuade the midfielder to remain at the club but, again, he respected his decision and allowed him to pursue other opportunities. “I did but I didn’t over-do that because it had to be Jordan’s decision,” Gerrard adds.

“He’s a big boy and I didn’t want to be someone – for example if I had convinced him to stay and he felt further down [the line] that it was the wrong decision then I didn’t want to be that person who he was told ‘why did you convince me to stay?’ It had to be Jordan’s decision. He needed his own time. He needed to go through his own processes. The advice I gave to Jordan was ‘do what’s right for your family’.”