Jordan Henderson explains why he signed for Brentford in his first sit-down interview, signing a two-year contract with the Bees.
The midfielder returns to the Premier League on a free transfer having had a short stint in Saudi Arabia with Al-Ettifaq and then in the Netherlands with Ajax.
Prior to that, Henderson was with Liverpool, where between 2011 and 2023, he lifted many trophies, including the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, two League Cups, Community Shield, Super Cup and Club World Cup.
Before that, he played for Coventry City (loan spell in 2009) and started out at Sunderland (youth between 1998 and 2008, then started his senior career with them, staying until 2011).
“I’m delighted that I’m here; I’m very excited to get started and get going,” Henderson said, per the club website.
“I’ve always had huge admiration for the club and what they’ve achieved over the last few years, in particular, how they’ve grown as a club.
“I’ve been told how organised and well-run the club is, it’s very family-oriented, which I think is very important.
“When I spoke to Phil Giles, Lee Dykes and Keith, I just had a really good feeling about everything. As soon as I had that conversation, it was clear for me that I wanted to come here and it was an easy decision in the end.
“When I spoke to Keith a few times, he was very good and very honest, and he’s excited to get started as well.
“He was another big reason why I wanted to come and try to help the club keep moving forward.”
Henderson added: “I try my best to pass on my experiences, especially to the younger players. But, at the same time, I still need to perform and do my job on the pitch.
“It’s a given that I’ll help everybody around me but, even at my age, you can still learn a lot, you can still improve, and you can still get better, which is what I want to do at this club.”
Henderson also spoke about the three former Liverpool players already at Brentford – Caoimhín Kelleher, Sepp van den Berg and Fábio Carvalho – who he knows well from his time as captain at Anfield.
The 35-year-old stated: “Caoimhin isn’t in [training] yet, but I’ve spoken to Sepp and Fáb a bit, along with the rest of the lads. It’s nice to have a few familiar faces, for sure.
“They’re great lads that I got on really well with at Liverpool, so that’s been nice for us to settle in.”
Brentford head coach Keith Andrews said: “When we became aware of Jordan’s availability, it was a pretty simple decision.
“We did our due diligence around his recent games to see where he is: he’s still phenomenally fit and he’s still phenomenally motivated to achieve things in the game, having already achieved a lot.
“With the void of experienced players leaving the building – Christian Nørgaard, Mark Flekken and Ben Mee – it was important to replace that.
“We’ve got a pretty young squad, overall, and we’ve got a lot of club experience, which is really important, with the likes of Vitaly Janelt, Mathias Jensen, Ethan Pinnock and Josh Dasilva, who is still at the club doing rehab.
“But what Jordan will bring is that he has been one of the most influential leaders in modern Premier League years. He’s been at the forefront of driving for titles and Champions Leagues at a fantastic football club.
“He also has experience at international level with England and, with that, comes a level of experience, professionalism and dedication to his profession – that’s the exact way we want to be as a football club.
“He will drive standards and be a brilliant addition to the squad.”
Here’s how fans reacted as Jordan Henderson explains why he signed for Brentford in his first sit-down interview…
@Daveconway123: Look after him. Anfield legend and leader on and off
@alexcostello99: I’ve changed my tune. We’ve just signed a generational midfielder.
@DaleLFC1983: Anfield last game of the season. Im just saying…
@BulletMoonstone: not expecting him to start every game, but for free the leadership and experience he gives is a bargain. Similar to how eriksen changed Matty Jensen, Hendo will do the same with Konak, Yarmo, Milambo. 🤩🤩
@anfieldsociaI: Good to see Hendo back in the prem!
@TheRevAshton: Very surprised to see he hasn’t gone back to Sunderland, thought it woulda been nailed on with them back in the PL!
@chsm25866965: Again, why didn’t he go to Sunderland or Sunderland go for him. That move made perfect sense, it’s homecoming for Sunderland and Sunderland gets vastly PL winning experienced player
@lucasofthewire: Surprised tbh I thought he’d go back to Sunderland
@DavidHindmarsh7: Just gonna pretend I haven’t seen this. Never wanted him back anyways 😒 #safc
@BcfcokJ: Can’t believe he’s not gone to Sunderland…
@S_lpool: He got some deserved criticism for going to Saudi after being so vocal for LGBTQ+ rights, but far too much compared to others, so hope he succeeds at Brentford.
