Steven Gerrard makes surprise Al-Ettifaq appointment after Jordan Henderson exit

02 February 2024 , 21:30

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Steven Gerrard has brought in a new coach at Al Ettifaq (Image: Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images)

Steven Gerrard has brought in former Bristol City and Charlton manager Dean Holden to work alongside him at Al-Ettifaq.

Gerrard has struggled since taking over at the Saudi Arabian side in July, winning just seven of his 21 matches, and his project was rocked by the departure of Jordan Henderson last month. The former Liverpool captain left for Ajax in the January transfer window, just six months after Gerrard persuaded him to move to the Saudi Pro League.

Al-Ettifaq are eighth in the Saudi Pro League, well off the pace set by leaders Al-Hilal and Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr in second. They are without a win in their past nine matches across all competitions, but Gerrard has doubled down on his commitment in recent weeks.

He signed a new contract with Al-Ettifaq on January 18 and has now brought in reinforcements by hiring Holden. The 44-year-old has lots of experience, having coached for a decade. He has managed Oldham, Bristol City and Charlton and spent time as caretaker at Stoke City.

A former right-back for clubs including Oldham, Peterborough, Falkirk and Shrewsbury, Holden has worked under Lee Johnson and Michael O'Neil as an assistant previously. His most recent job came at Charlton, where he won just 12 out of 32 games between December 2022 and August 2023.

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Al-Ettifaq have also announced the appointment of Darren Davies as first-team coach and Tom Spring as chief scout. The appointments show the club backing Gerrard, despite a poor start to the season and Henderson’s exit.

While they’ve lost Henderson, the club still have ex-Liverpool midfielder Gini Wijnaldum, former Leicester winger Demarai Gray and ex-Lyon striker Moussa Dembele as their key overseas talents. Former Rangers and Aston Villa boss Gerrard has tried to use his connections to bring in other high-profile players. The club signed Seko Fofana on loan from Al-Nassr as a replacement for Henderson in January.

Dean Holden was sacked by Charlton in August (Tom West/Getty Images)

Explaining why he joined Al-Ettifaq in July, Gerrard said: “It needs to be right for my family first and foremost, we have to be excited and motivated by the challenge. I think the football project needs to be ambitious, it needs to be for the right reasons in terms of the challenge and the remit. And of course, you need to feel secure, that the contract is right, but that always comes at the very end.”

Gerrard has moved to the Middle East with wife Alex and children Lilly Ella, 19; Lexie, 17; Lourdes, 12 and Lio, 7. He earns in the region of £15million per year and has been provided with a luxury villa in Damman by his employers. However, Gerrard splits his time there with a base in nearby Bahrain, where his family live in a £10,000-a-month luxury villa with its own swimming pool and games room.

Felix Keith