Topic: Stevie G and Saudi Arabia

[tubby]

If Henderson comes back to watch a game this season and takes a lap of the pitch with a full crowd, does he get booed or cheered or a mixed reaction?

[Mister Flip Flop]

Not a fan of Simon Jordan but he is tearing the interview apart. Some rage.

Who's Simon Jordan mate?

[tubby]

Who's Simon Jordan mate?

Used to own Palace, now works for TalkSport and is generally pretty good and very straightforward.  Great about the business side of football too.

[Mister Flip Flop]

Used to own Palace, now works for TalkSport and is generally pretty good and very straightforward.  Great about the business side of football too.

Ah yeah i know who it is now pal. Ta

[ScouserAtHeart]

haha thinking about a testimonial or a chance to come say bye

He can't be serious

[Mister Flip Flop]

haha thinking about a testimonial or a chance to come say bye

He can't be serious

He can get ta fuck. He'd be absolutely hammered with abuse if he ever considered it.

https://t.co/JyIBejgcZ2

This is what Henderson signed up to accepting.

[Nobby Reserve]

If Henderson had played in 1938

"Yeah, I'm loving it here playing for the Munich Nazis. If I wear that armband supporting Jewish rights, if that disrespects Nazism, then that’s not right either.

"Everybody should be respectful of culture. That’s what I think we’re all trying to fight for here in terms of inclusion and everything."



Utter dimwitted piece of shit.

[jckliew]

What will happen to this?

[Ray K]

To summarise.

Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others.

[Dave D]

It’s hard to know what the reality is and what’s not true. Because you hear about stuff and you’re like, “Is that true?” But when you speak to people who are close to me and have had experiences over in Saudi or over in the Middle East, it’s like, “Well, actually, that’s not the same.”

A perfect example would be before Qatar. We had a meeting with the FA about human rights, about the issues around the stadiums. I think it might have been Amnesty who had sent the images and stuff. And then, half an hour later, I go into a press conference or some media and I’ve commented on that situation. I was like, “Well, it was quite shocking and horrendous” and that was quite hard for us to see. But then when I went to Qatar and we had the experience we had at the World Cup, you get to meet the workers there and it was totally different.

I’m not saying that it wasn’t true. All of this stuff might have been. But when you go there and experience it for yourself, it is totally different.

Seriously, is he the dumbest c*nt to ever play for us?

[Dave D]

What will happen to this?

Covered with shit hopefully.

[smicer07]

What will happen to this?

It should stay, Henderson is still part of our history. He's just very very thick.

[jillcwhomever]

What will happen to this?

It get's replaced with something else, I live in a place which is forever having new walls painted. Perhaps instead of footballers use these walls to symbolise the proper heroes in our communities rather than sportsmen.

[rob1966]

Seriously, is he the dumbest c*nt to ever play for us?

you get to meet the workers there and it was totally different.

What, the ones who survived? Did you visit the graves of the dead as well?

[Andy82lfc]

Quote

A perfect example would be before Qatar. We had a meeting with the FA about human rights, about the issues around the stadiums. I think it might have been Amnesty who had sent the images and stuff. And then, half an hour later, I go into a press conference or some media and I’ve commented on that situation. I was like, “Well, it was quite shocking and horrendous” and that was quite hard for us to see. But then when I went to Qatar and we had the experience we had at the World Cup, you get to meet the workers there and it was totally different.

I’m not saying that it wasn’t true. All of this stuff might have been. But when you go there and experience it for yourself, it is totally different.

Seriously, is he the dumbest c*nt to ever play for us?

Honestly half of that just reads as a parody. Hard to think that's a genuine quote but it is.

The naivety and ignorance is just mind-numbingly staggering.

[Nobby Reserve]

What will happen to this?

Rainbow-fy it.

Show up his stinking hypocrisy and his for-sale morals.

[jepovic]

It seems like he's trying to rationalize his greed to himself most of all. Many players would just take the money and shut up. Not because they are smart, but because they never promoted themselves as role models.

He sold out his legacy for a pile of cash, and that fact is not easy to accept for someone who identifies as a morally superior.

For the rest of us, it's mostly pathetic. Trying to smear blame on Klopp is another level though.

[Trotterwatch]

Thanks. So Henderson is trying to blame Klopp and the club for not 'wanting' him enough that he felt able to turn down the blood-money. He then tries to excuse the human rights abuses of the Saudi regime as cultural. As an attempt to massage his image, it's a disaster. As a testimony to his character, it speaks volumes. He's a shit. And I hope he's never invited back to Anfield in the future - that needs to be made clear to the club liaison people.

Agreed with all of this.

[MD1990]

Henderson: No, just thanks for taking the time. I don’t want a pat on the back or anything but I could have easily not done anything. I could have gone with another journalist (Adam is part of the LGBTQ+ community) who I may have a relationship with and been protected more. But I felt as though this felt right. Because I want to learn as well. Because it’s hard for me to hear some of the stuff that I’ve heard and I want to learn why that’s the case and how I can help going forward. People can make their own mind up.

He doesnt want a pat on the back but gives himself one to end the interview. I think the mask has slipped & we are seeing how single minded he is

Reading the whole thing it is possibly the dumbest & worst interview I have ever read. Unbelievable how dumb he is.
He has empathy with & he wore the rainbow laces so basically everything is ok then.

Adam Crafton: Was there part of you that was thinking, “I’d just like you to fight for me a little bit”, as in “fight for me to stay”?

Henderson: If one of those people said to me, “Now we want you to stay”, then we wouldn’t be having this conversation. And I have to then think about what’s next for me in my career. Now, that’s not to say that they forced me out of the club or they were saying they wanted me to leave but at no point did I feel wanted by the club or anyone to stay.

Ornstein: Why did you choose the Saudi offer? Did you have other opportunities? Because I think many people will be wondering what the captain of Liverpool was doing considering that move.

Henderson: I’m at the latter stage of my career and I want to be happy playing football. I want to play. I don’t want to be sitting on the bench and coming on for 10 minutes in games. And I knew that would have an effect on my chances of playing for England.

Crafton: Liverpool have bought midfielders before when you’ve been at the club. Thiago Alcantara came in. Naby Keita came in. And you’ve always responded. There have been times when players came and I’ve thought, “Is Jordan going to be in trouble?” And then you came back stronger each time. Were you tempted to think, “OK, they’re not saying they’re desperate for me to stay, but I’m going to prove them wrong and get back in the team”?

Henderson: 100 per cent. That was the whole thing about this training regime over the summer. I was working so hard and people saw the shape that I came back in. But when I got back, it was still the same situation, which made me think, “Actually, this time, does it matter what I do?”

Ornstein: Did you consider other options or was it full steam ahead with the Al Ettifaq approach?

Henderson: I think a lot of clubs would have known there was a possibility of me leaving because it was speculated over the summer. I’d love to sit here and say that every club under the sun was wanting me. But the reality was that they weren’t. Liverpool is where my kids were born; I’ve achieved so much there. I love the club, I love the fans and the thought of playing against them would have been a different challenge in a different way. And it wasn’t something that I felt was right for me.

Crafton: What if it would have been maybe a Brighton or a Brentford, that kind of level, or was it your view, “If I’m going to stay in European football, I want to be really competing at the top”?

Henderson: I wanted something that would excite me. And that’s not to say those clubs wouldn’t excite me because they are great clubs and they come with really different challenges. But it needed to be something that I felt as though I could add value in and do and try something new — a new challenge and for different reasons.

And this opportunity with Stevie (Gerrard) in a totally different league and totally different culture was something completely different, that maybe it would excite us in terms of the project that was put in front of us, in terms of the league and using my experience to try to help with that in many different areas and feeling that people value. It’s nice to feel wanted. I know Stevie really wanted me. I know the club really wanted me to go and they wanted us to try and build over the next few years — something that is here to stay and be one of the best leagues in the world.

Ornstein: Does that value extend to monetary? Because there’ll be so many people who will hear you say, “I want the challenge and the project and Stevie and the excitement” but still say “he has just gone for the money”.
Henderson celebrates a win in Saudi Arabia (Photo: ALI ALHAJI/AFP via Getty Images)

Henderson: That was the hardest thing. People will see this club come with loads of money and he’s just gone, “Yeah, I’m going.” When in reality that just wasn’t the case at all. People can believe me or not, but in my life and my career, money has never been a motivation. Ever. Don’t get me wrong, when you move, the business deal has to be tight. You have to have financials, you have to feel wanted, you have to feel valued. And money is a part of that. But that wasn’t the sole reason. And these possibilities came up before money was even mentioned.

horrible excuses here full of contradictions.
Wanted gurantees about game time but little interest elsewhere to sign him beacuse of his decline

[Yorkykopite]

Seriously, is he the dumbest c*nt to ever play for us?

People see what they WANT to see.

Right-wing Tories visited Berlin for the 1936 Olympics. They didn't see see Dachau, they weren't affected by the Nuremberg laws making life impossible for Jewish Germans, they didn't see the Brownshirts intimidating working-class neighbourhoods from their barracks. They saw the Olympic Games and they were "fun". Conclusion - everything was ok.

Fellow-travelling communists visited the Soviet Union in the same year. They didn't see the Gulag, they didn't witness the famine in Ukraine, they didn't visit the NKVD torture chambers of Lubyanka. They were guided to some lovely factories, some lovely schools and some lovely prisons. Conclusion - everything was ok.

It takes a lot of stupidity - wilful ignorance I would say - for someone in the 21st century to fall for this kind of window dressing. Henderson should have shut his gob, played 'football' and taken the coin. This interview is predicated on the hope that Liverpool supporters are as gullible and as apathetic as he is. They aren't.

[Red Beret]

Wait - he didn't feel wanted? 

What, was he fucking surprised that Liverpool didn't panic and offer an ageing player with two years left on his already bumper contract another deal to stop the Saudi's plucking him out of the club?

Wanker.

[classycarra]

"Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and to remove all doubt"

100%

'No I'm not motivated by money at all. Not now, not ever.'
Moments later...
'No I'm not paid £700k a week haha I wish!'

[shook]

This guy [Henderson] is going to be a Sky Sports 'pundit' when he is done in Saudi Arabia.
Prove me wrong.

[has gone odd]

Really gutted that Henderson and others have soured their history with Liverpool. Loved Bobby to, utter professional but he chose this fantasy land and to that end, their legacy is ruined.

Is like he is trying to justify and vindicate Saudi because he is there, seeing what they want him to see. It's not like they will put an arm around his shoulder and say, "c'mon lad, lets go to this weeks beheading ..". It will never sit right with anyone who has some kind of moral compass.

At no point was money discussed prior to signing? Do me a favour! Some of his comments seem weird and contradictory to me, "its not about money but of course it is a factor", as one example.

What really really stinks in all this is Saudi using Liverpool imagery to promote their shite league and players. Scum.

[Red-Soldier]

It get's replaced with something else, I live in a place which is forever having new walls painted. Perhaps instead of footballers use these walls to symbolise the proper heroes in our communities rather than sportsmen.

I agree.

The unsung heroes.  Or not even people, perhaps projects, or other things that really matter, symbols or something.  Footballers are not heroes.

[WhereAngelsPlay]

What a fucking twat.

He's nothing but a money grabbing, lying fucking hypocrite & I know that some think he should be welcomed back so he can get the farewell that he "deserves" but fuck that, he should spend the rest of his days in that despotic shithole.


Legend status destroyed & he's not even got the decency to keep his fucking mouth shut. I'm starting to hate the c*nt.

[LovelyCushionedHeader]

Some of them are thick, some are very intelligent, just like everyone else. I know for a fact at the ADFC academy, they put them in a club private school and they are required to get good reports from the school, they're not allowed to slack off and I assume its the case all over.

Think that's just part of the problem to be honest. Footballers from a very young age just live in their own little pampered bubble, and being put through private school aligns to that. They don't learn about real life problems that face 99.9% of people.

They might come out of education book smart, but that doesn't necessarily relate to day-to-day intelligence.

[Mister Flip Flop]

This guy [Henderson] is going to be a Sky Sports 'pundit' when he is done in Saudi Arabia.
Prove me wrong.

He's certainly dumb enough.

[WhereAngelsPlay]

The Henderson thread got deleted

Totally ?

If so I like that stance & would welcome all of the money grabbing twats threads to get thrown into the dustbin of history. Not one of them including Stevie deserves a historical record of our love and admiration, fuck'em all.

[Walshy nMe®]

What will happen to this?

I hope they paint a giant rainbow over it

[Tonyh8su]

If Henderson comes back to watch a game this season and takes a lap of the pitch with a full crowd, does he get booed or cheered or a mixed reaction?

Booed out of the building, that’s what I’ll be doing anyway.

The cheek of the prick.

[AnfieldRD19]

Good on Adam Crafton for pressing him in that interview.

[JP!]

Felt a bit pissed off with him since his public campaign for an unnecessary new contract via Burger Head Pearce among others a couple of years ago, but still couldn't have imagined he'd stoop this low. Tit.

[Mahern]

Methinks selling out doesn't sit so comfortably with Jordan's conscience as say Gerrard's or Firmino's. I think he genuinely does care, just not as much as dollars. Oh well, you make your bed....

[Ma Vie en Rouge]

Well he's totally embarrassed himself throughout that interview. The parts where he was suggesting that the bad reputation of places like Saudi and Qatar are not the reality because he went to Qatar and the workers seemed happy are particularly painful. It's idiotic, at best.

The only good PR move was to say nothing - but Jordan's view of himself as a "brave man of principle" wouldn't allow him to just keep quiet, of course.

He knows he's wrecked his reputation here, I think. There's no coming back from any of this.

[jillcwhomever]

I agree.

The unsung heroes.  Or not even people, perhaps projects, or other things that really matter, symbols or something.  Footballers are not heroes.

My favourite wall is one done of the guy who leads the Lifeboat rescue for the past forty years, think of how many lives he would have saved in that time. These are the people who should be celebrated.

[Son of Spion]

What will happen to this?

I'd like to see it replaced. Maybe with a mural of the Kop Outs logo, in support of the Liverpool FC LGBT+ supporters group.

[Chakan]

Not even gonna bother commenting on the article. Whatever can be said to him has already.

[Nobby Reserve]

People can believe me or not, but in my life and my career, money has never been a motivation. Ever. Don’t get me wrong, when you move, the business deal has to be tight. You have to have financials, you have to feel wanted, you have to feel valued. And money is a part of that. But that wasn’t the sole reason.

[Hoenheim]

Sometimes in life there are moments when it's better to shut up, this was one of them.
Embarrassing from all points of view