Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has criticised the “morality officers” who have rounded on Jordan Henderson following his move to Saudi Arabian club Al-Ettifaq.
The former Liverpool captain, as a long-time supporter of the LGBT+ community, has drawn widespread condemnation for his decision to move to a country where homosexuality is illegal.
However, Rodgers – who managed Henderson during his three years at Anfield – defended a player’s decision to choose where they ply their trade.
Former Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers (centre) has defended Jordan Henderson’s move to Saudi Arabia (Peter Byrne/PA)
“It’s their profession, it’s their life so they have to do what’s best for them,” Rodgers told talkSPORT. “There are so many morality officers around the world nowadays that are judging people.
“But Jordan I know extremely well and I know the love he had and will always have for Liverpool.
“He was at the stage of his career where he probably wasn’t going to be the first name on the teamsheet any more.
“At 32 years of age, he’s won absolutely everything. He probably fancied a different challenge and out of respect, it probably didn’t feel right for him being at another Premier League club.
“So to go abroad and take on a new challenge clearly suited him.”
In his interview with The Athletic, Henderson stressed money was not a motivating factor for him and denied reports he was earning £700,000-a-week.
But the wealth of the Saudi Pro League, particularly Al-Nassr, Al-Hilal, Al-Ittihad, and Al-Ahli who are backed by the country’s sovereign wealth fund, has undoubtedly had a massive impact on this summer’s transfer window and will on windows to come.
“It’s definitely something that makes players wobble because of the money that’s talked about and what it can do for players and the legacy it can create for their families for years down the line,” Rodgers added.
“What makes (Saudi Arabia) dangerous is not only the money, they have a plan. The plan is attracting top players and looking to get top managers out there.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel