Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson insists he cannot wait to get started on a new challenge after completing a controversial move to Saudi Arabian side Al-Ettifaq.
The 33-year-old brought to an end a 12-year stay at Anfield in which he won every major trophy by finalising a three-year deal with reported wages of up to £700,000 a week.
Henderson, who posted a farewell message to Reds fans on Wednesday, took to Instagram again after his signing was confirmed.
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“Delighted to announce I’ve signed for @ettifaq. New challenge ahead, can’t wait to get going. Welcome to Saudi Arabia,” he wrote.
Liverpool are due to receive an initial £12million for the England international, who will be reunited with his former team-mate Steven Gerrard who is manager at the Saudi Pro League club.
“There is no doubt that Henderson is a distinguished addition,” said Al-Ettifaq vice-president Professor Hatem Al-Mishal.
“We completed the deal after the recommendation of sports director Elko Chatori and the technical staff led by English coach Steven Gerrard, who accompanied him as a player and knows his capabilities.”
Henderson was seen training with his new team-mates at a camp in Croatia in a fan video posted on social media, which will have caused Liverpool some embarrassment even though it was hastily deleted.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp paid tribute to his departing captain.
“I know it was a really, really tough decision for Hendo and I was around or with him all the way,” he told the club’s website.
“It’s sad, absolutely strange, because he is the only captain I had here at Liverpool, but I think it is exciting for him as well.
“We will miss him, without a shadow of a doubt, that’s clear – as a man and as a player. But, as I said, that’s football.”
However, Henderson’s move had attracted criticism due to his long-time support of LGBT+ issues and the Premier League’s Rainbow Laces campaign.
Homosexuality is illegal and punishable by death in Saudi Arabia, while the state stands accused of a host of other abuses including placing harsh restrictions on women’s rights and the right to political protest.
Al-Ettifaq’s video montage to announce Henderson’s arrival mixes colour and black and white footage but in the majority of the images the captain’s armband he is wearing – including both the LGBT+ rainbow and UEFA’s No to Racism – is greyed out.
“Jordan Henderson is of course free to play for whoever he chooses, but we would urge him to examine Saudi Arabia’s human rights record and be prepared to speak out about human rights violations in the country,” Amnesty’s UK economic affairs director Peter Frankental told the PA news agency last week.
Pride in Football, a network of LGBT+ fan groups, said in a statement: “When you see someone who has been an ally so publicly transfer to a club in a country where LGBT+ people are attacked and imprisoned, it is disappointing.
“Good luck in Saudi Arabia Jordan, but you have lost the respect of so many people who valued you and trusted you.”
Henderson joins a growing list of players moving to Saudi Arabia.
However, one player who will not be heading to the Middle East is Paris St Germain’s Kylian Mbappe, who reportedly refused to meet Al-Hilal officials in Paris on Wednesday after his club accepted what would be a world-record transfer fee of £259million.
PSG believe Mbappe, who has 12 months left on his contract, has already agreed a free transfer to Real Madrid but their willingness to listen to offers for the 24-year-old has led to speculation linking him to the Premier League.
However, the financial implications of such a move would be beyond almost all the clubs in the top flight.
Klopp: Premier League cannot continue with current version of VAR
Departing Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp would vote to remove VAR in its current guise from the Premier League, though he also believes officiating standards are a problem.
On Wednesday, it was revealed that Wolves – who have been on the wrong end of several contentious decisions this season – had tabled a motion to abolish VAR from the top flight.
The club listed several "negative consequences" brought on by the technology's introduction, including an impact on in-stadium atmospheres, diminished accountability of match officials and its role in furthering "completely nonsensical" allegations of corruption from fans.
The role of VAR is now set to be discussed at an annual shareholders' meeting on June 6, though Wolves' motion is thought unlikely to garner the 14 votes needed to pass.
Liverpool were on the wrong end of perhaps the most high-profile VAR error this season, when Darren England mistakenly cleared an incorrect offside call on a Luis Diaz goal against Tottenham.
Liverpool face Wolves in their final game under Klopp on Sunday, and the Reds boss believes they are right to say VAR is not working in its current guise.
"I don't think they're voting against VAR, I think they'll vote about how it gets used, because that's definitely not right. I understand that," Klopp said.
"In the way they do it, I would vote against it, because these people are not able to use it properly.
"I do not think VAR is the problem but the way we use it is the problem. You cannot change the people, it's clear. You need them. So yeah, I would vote for scrapping VAR."
Meanwhile, it was also announced on Friday that midfielder Thiago Alcantara will leave Liverpool when his contract expires in June, after four injury-hit years at Anfield.
Thiago has been limited to just 68 Premier League appearances throughout his time with the Reds, including one match this campaign.
"Before he even came to Liverpool I believed that if you really love football it would make a lot of sense if you watched Thiago Alcantara play," Klopp said of the Spaniard.
"Technically, he is so, so good, a talent who could play in any team in the world, and it was a privilege to have him with us."
Shaw struggling to be fit for FA Cup final after injury setback
Manchester United defender Luke Shaw is fighting against the odds to be passed fit for the crucial FA Cup final against rivals Manchester City.
Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag revealed the left-back’s injury has proven more complicated than first thought and added his chances of making the game are low, but has not definitively ruled out the England international.
He is more optimistic about Harry Maguire, though even the centre-back was only rated as having a “fair chance” of being passed fit to face Pep Guardiola’s men at Wembley on May 25.
Before that, United will finish their Premier League campaign with a match away to Brighton on Sunday.
Despite a desperately disappointing campaign, there are still two potential routes for United to make it into Europe for next season.
Ten Hag's side are eighth in the table, level on 57 points with seventh-placed Newcastle United, who visit Brentford on the final day.
If United beat FA Cup holders City, they will play in the Europa League next season.
Failure to do so would mean they must have finished seventh in the league to secure a spot in the Europa Conference League, so they will need to better Newcastle’s result on the final day.
Shaw has been restricted to playing in 15 games for United across all competitions this season. He was expected to return before the end of the campaign when he suffered a muscle problem in the away win over Luton Town in February.
Ten Hag was asked about Shaw and Maguire ahead of the last two games of United’s season, a fitness update which has added importance due to their likely inclusion, if fit, in England’s squad for Euro 2024 this summer.
"For England, I can't say, it's not up to me," Ten Hag said. "But for the cup final, we're working on it.
"Harry Maguire, it's a fair chance that he will be available.
“Luke is more complicated, in this moment, let's say it's a low chance that he will make it. But there is still a very small, reduced chance."
As well as giving Maguire a chance of making the final, Ten Hag also confirmed fellow defenders Raphael Varane and Victor Lindelof have returned to training in a boost ahead of the Man City clash.
Varane is leaving Man Utd at the end of the season, with a number of other players expected to follow him out the exit door, but Ten Hag wants his squad fully focused amid frenzied speculation over transfer activity.
"All the issues will only distract us,” he said.
“We know what we are building on, and we have to keep this process going.”
Shaw, 28, played in last season’s FA Cup final defeat to City and has also been a runner-up at the Euros, having scored in England’s eventual defeat on penalties to Italy in the Euro 2020 final.
Liverpool confirm departure of defender Matip
Liverpool have confirmed the impending departure of long-serving defender Joel Matip.
The centre-back joined Liverpool as one of Jurgen Klopp's first signings back in 2016, and over an eight-year spell, has played a key role in the Reds' success.
Matip, 32, is out of contract at the end of the season, having not featured since December due to a serious knee injury.
On Friday, the club confirmed the former Schalke defender would be following Klopp in leaving Anfield.
Speaking to Liverpool's official club channels, Matip said: "It has been eight wonderful years here in Liverpool.
"I was allowed to be part of an exciting history with a great coach and an astonishing team in an extraordinary club. We have achieved great titles and have the best fans in the world.
"I am full of gratitude for the wonderful time I was able to experience with these unique people supporting the club and the fans who love Liverpool.
"My wife and I have felt welcomed and supported from day one and together with the kids we had the best imaginable time here. We will always keep it in special memories."
Klopp added: "In all the years that I have been involved in football, I am not sure I have come across too many players who are more loved than Joel.
"I'm not even sure it would be possible to say anything bad about him."
Injuries have curtailed Matip's recent seasons, with the former Cameroon international managing just 24 Premier League appearances across the last two campaigns.
He leaves Liverpool having won one league title, the Champions League, the FA Cup, EFL Cup, Community Shield and Super Cup.
Matip will get the chance to say goodbye to the Anfield faithful when Liverpool face Wolves in Klopp's final game on Sunday.
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