England international Jordan Henderson captained Liverpool to Champions League and Premier League success and has started a new adventure at Dutch giants Ajax.

Henderson started out at boyhood club Sunderland, coming through their youth academy and playing for the Black Cats in the Premier League.

During 2008/09, the season in which he made his Premier League debut, Henderson spent time on loan at Coventry City in the Championship. In 2011, he signed for Liverpool for a reported fee of £20million.

Henderson's Liverpool career got off to a difficult start, but he soon won the trust of the Kop faithful and became captain after Steven Gerrard left the club in 2015.

He ended a 12-year stay at Anfield, in which he won every major trophy including the 2019 Champions League title and the 2019/20 Premier League, by joining Saudi Arabian side Al-Ettifaq in July 2023.

But after a rocky six months, he left Al-Ettifaq and joined Ajax on a two-and-a-half-year deal in January 2024.

Henderson made his England debut in 2010, and has played at six major international tournaments.

 

Breaking through at Sunderland

After a decade in their youth system, Henderson signed a professional contract with hometown club Sunderland on 1 July 2008 and made his debut in the league as a half-time substitute in a 5-0 away defeat to Chelsea. A highly impressive loan spell at Coventry City would follow in 2009.

Though initially breaking through under Roy Keane, it was Steve Bruce who benefited most from Henderson's talents at the Black Cats. Henderson made a big impression in the preseason Amsterdam tournament

Henderson took that momentum into Sunderland's first team during their 2009/10 campaign, making 33 Premier League appearances - most of them on the right side of midfield. The following campaign was when he moved into the centre of midfield, and another impressive season saw him starting to attract the eyes of England's top clubs.

According to Sir Alex Ferguson, he had kept an eye on Henderson, but opted not to sign him for Manchester United because of issues with his running style which could lead to injuries.

On 9 June 2011, Henderson joined Liverpool for a reported £20million.

 

Joining Liverpool

Henderson's transfer fee at Liverpool was the subject of derision. When Chelsea attempted to sign Luka Modric from Tottenham Hotspur for £22million, Spurs manager Harry Redknapp said: "If there has been a bid of £22m that is ridiculous. There are people being sold for £20m who are not fit to lace Luka's boots." It was widely interpreted as a reference to Henderson.

Under Kenny Dalglish, Henderson struggled in the 2011/12 season, which saw Liverpool win the Capital One Cup but finish eighth in the Premier League and lose the final of the FA Cup to Chelsea.

In August 2012, new Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers attempted to move Henderson on to Fulham, but he opted to stay and fight for his place -- a decision which ultimately paid dividends.

The 2012/13 season was another difficult one for Liverpool, who finished seventh in the Premier League after a disastrous start under Rodgers.

However, the 2013/14 season was hugely impressive and Henderson played a central role. Liverpool finished second in the Premier League, only narrowly losing the title to Manchester City.

Following the sale of Luis Suarez to Barcelona, Liverpool struggled to keep pace in 2014/15 and finished sixth in the league. After the end of the season, midfield legend Steven Gerrard left for LA Galaxy, and Henderson was named the new Liverpool captain.

Henderson by now was a key figure in the Liverpool side, and he helped create the momentum that eventually saw him do something for the club that Gerrard never could - lift the Premier League title.

Early in the 2015/16 campaign, Rodgers was sacked and replaced by Jurgen Klopp. Though the German could not steer them away from an unimpressive eighth-place finish in the Premier League, he did take them to the UEFA Europa League final, where they lost 3-1 to Sevilla.

Liverpool spent much of the first half of the 2016/17 season looking like they would at the very least take the title race to the wire. However, they fell off the pace of eventual champions Chelsea as the season progressed, ultimately finishing fourth and narrowly qualifying for the UEFA Champions League.

They once again finished fourth in the Premier League in the 2017/18 season, but surprised most with a run to the UEFA Champions League final in Kiev, where they lost 3-1 to Real Madrid.

The 2018/19 season saw the culmination of all that momentum, with Henderson captaining Liverpool to the Champions League title. Remarkably, they overturned a 3-0 first leg deficit against Barcelona to win the semi-final before beating Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in the final.

However, the Reds narrowly missed out on the Premier League title, losing to Manchester City on the last day of the season.

In 2019/20, Liverpool went one better and Henderson collected the Premier League title. However, the Reds were unable to share the moment with their fans due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Henderson was also named the FWA Footballer of the Year.

In August, 2021, Henderson signed a new four-year deal at the club, seeing his spell extend to 2025.

The 2020/21 season saw less success for Liverpool after a number of long-term injuries, including one to Henderson, hugely weakened Klopp's side.

However, after a late resurgence in results, Liverpool made a late push into the top four, and secured a third-placed finish on the final day, with Henderson making his 300th Premier League season during the season.

Henderson captained the Liverpool side that lifted the 2022 FA Cup after a penalty shootout win over Chelsea.

 

Move to Al-Ettifaq

On July 27, 2023, Henderson ended his 12-year stay at Anfield, in which he won every major trophy, by finalising a controversial move to Saudi Arabian side Al-Ettifaq.

Liverpool received an initial £12million from the Saudi Pro League club and reunited with former team-mate Steven Gerrard who is Al-Ettifaq manager.

However, Henderson's move 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.

"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 said.

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 subsequently apologised for any hurt caused, but was booed off the pitch at Wembley during an England friendly against Australia in October 2023.

But he only lasted six months in Saudi Arabia and on January 18, Al-Ettifaq confirmed they had reached an amicable settlement with the 33-year-old to leave the club. Ajax pounced and signed Henderson on a two-and-a-half-year deal.

Henderson told the official Ajax website: “It’s been a difficult year or so for the club, both on and off the field, but that’s the same for me in the past six months.

“So hopefully we can help each other come together and help each other go forward and try and be as successful as possible in the near future.

“It’s been a bit of a whirlwind, crazy few days, but I’m just so excited now to be here, to start a new chapter, a new journey in my life and my career and I’m just so excited to be here and part of this club.

“Once I knew that there was an opportunity, I was overexcited and really overwhelmed that this opportunity was there for me. It was something that I wanted to try and make happen.”

Henderson added on Instagram: “I’m sad to say that I will be leaving Al-Ettifaq with immediate effect. It wasn’t an easy decision but one that I feel is best for me and my family.”

 

Jordan Henderson and England national team

Henderson played for England at Under-19 and Under-21 level before earning a promotion to the senior squad.

In 2010 while playing for boyhood club Sunderland, he received his first senior call-up under Fabio Capello for a friendly against France, making his international debut alongside Steven Gerrard in that match.

Henderson was initially named as a standby player for UEFA Euro 2012, but was promoted to the squad to replace the injured Frank Lampard and played a role in England's run to the quarter-finals under Roy Hodgson.

He was also part of England's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, which ended in a calamitous group stage exit for the Three Lions.

 

Henderson was again in the squad for Euro 2016, where England suffered another embarrassing exit, losing to Iceland in the last 16. Henderson was spared those blushes though, as he was an unused substitute in that match.

In 2018, Henderson was a pivotal part of the England side which made the semi-finals of the FIFA World Cup in Russia, as well as the team which finished third at the inaugural UEFA Nations League in 2018/19.

Henderson was an injury doubt ahead of Euro 2020, but he was named in the squad regardless.

He missed the first two games before being slowly brought back by Gareth Southgate, although he was unable to displace Declan Rice and Kalvin Philips as the Three Lions' starting central midfield duo.

Henderson did come off the bench regularly through the tournament, though, and headed home his first England goal in the quarter-final against Ukraine.

The former Sunderland man was also used in the final against Italy, although was withdrawn before the penalty shootout which earned Italy the title.

Henderson scored his second England goal against Albania during 2022 World Cup qualification, and then netted again during the tournament in Qatar in the 3-0 round of 16 win over Senegal.

He scored his third international goal in the 2022 World Cup against Senegal in the round of 16.

 

Jordan Henderson personal life

Henderson and wife Rebecca Burnett have three children. His father survived oral cancer early in his stint at Liverpool and later attended the 2019 Champions League final in Madrid.

The former Sunderland man was the instigator of a fund organised by Premier League captains to donate millions of pounds to the NHS during Covid-19.

 

Jordan Henderson net worth

Henderson earned reported wages of up to £700,000-a-week with Al-Ettifaq and could earn 75% less at Ajax.