England fans furious with Henderson inclusion for two reasons in Australia win
It might be a quiz question coming your way soon, a mildly interesting piece of pub trivia.
Which footballer captained England at a time when he was plying his club trade in front of an average home crowd of less than 7,000 spectators? In fact, last month, one of his team’s away fixtures attracted 976 fans.
Yet four weeks after Jordan Henderson helped Al-Ettifaq to a 3-1 Saudi Pro League win over Abha in front of less than a thousand people, he was captaining his country at a sell-out Wembley. To be fair, in terms of quality, this game was strictly Saudi Pro League standard, so Henderson would have felt at home.
But his selection as skipper was significant. Not only does Southgate have no qualms about picking a player who has given up elite football for an obscene amount of money but a significantly lower standard of play, he has no qualms about giving him the highest honour in the English game.
Disdain for Henderson’s place in this team was reflected not only in the smattering of Wembley jeers that greeted the announcement of his name but in a more liberal sprinkling of social media comments. There were dual objections.
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- A player who has defected to Saudi for the dough should not be picked for England.
- Henderson is a veteran whose game is known intimately by Southgate so what was the manager going to learn from this?
HAVE YOUR SAY! Should Jordan Henderson have been picked as England captain? Comment below.
Jordan Henderson skippered England against Australia (The FA via Getty Images)But perhaps Southgate did have a lot to learn? Perhaps this was a test for Henderson? When the Al-Ettifaq player was included in last month’s squad, it was, presumably, on the basis of his Liverpool form and on his more recent contributions to the England cause.
Now, Henderson has been in Saudi for a couple of months and, in this October camp, maybe Southgate wants to see if the mediocrity of the Pro League has had any effect on the 33-year-old. Southgate will not just be able to judge from Henderson’s contribution to this match but he will be able to judge from his standards in training.
As it happened, his contribution to this match was not of great significance. He was not terrible, he was not great. He performed his defensive duties diligently but never threatened to take what passed for a midfield battle by the scruff of the neck. He passed it sideways a lot. He passed it backwards now and again, forwards now and again. In other words, it was a forgettable performance.
In fact, when he was replaced just after Ollie Watkins broke the deadlock, the jeers that accompanied him to the bench were probably the result of some fans only just realising he had been out there. As the boos were noticeably louder than they had been earlier, Southgate felt the need to give Henderson - who, probably ironically, had applauded the crowd - a special hug.
Perhaps, Southgate was keen to show he still had faith in his Saudi exile. Or perhaps, Southgate knows that, realistically, life in the Saudi Pro League means Henderson’s days in an England shirt are surely coming to an end.
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