Midfielder, Jordan Henderson has joined Brentford on a free transfer following his departure from Ajax.
Henderson last Thursday (10 July) announced that he had terminated his contract at Ajax with a year left on his contract, and has now completed a free transfer to Brentford on a two-year contract until June 2027, marking his Premier League return after two years aboard.
Brentford’s new Head Coach, Keith Andrews explained that their choice to sign Henderson once he left Ajax on a free transfer “was a pretty simple decision.”
With supporters likely to question whether swooping for a 35-year-old to replace Christian Norgaard’s level of experience, Andrews quelled any fears by explaining that the club had done thorough analysis of Henderson’s fitness.
“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.”
Norgaard isn’t the only experienced player to have left with Mark Flekken and Ben Mee having too departed this summer to leave the club short on strong experience, which Andrews believes Henderson can fill the “important” role given the young nature and club experience level at the club.
“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.”
Henderson began his career at Sunderland where he graduated through their youth academy to score five goals in 79 senior appearances, during which he managed one goal in 13 appearances on loan at Coventry in 2008-09 season.
June 2011 saw him depart Wearside for a 12-year spell at Liverpool where he managed 33 goals in 492 appearances and replaced Steven Gerrard as captain in summer 2015.
Across his stint at Liverpool, Henderson helped the team claim eight titles, including two EFL Cup titles;
- 2 x EFL Cup (2011-12, 21-22)
- 1 x Premier League (2019-20)
- 1 x FA Cup (2021-22)
- 1 x FA Community Shield (2022)
- 1 x UEFA Champions League (2018-19)
- 1 x UEFA Super Cup (2019)
- 1 x FIFA Club World Cup (2019)
Henderson has since played for Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ettifaq and Ajax where he managed one goal in 76 total appearances across both clubs.
The 35-year-old represents England at international level with three goals in 84 senior appearances, during which the Three Lions finished runners-up at UEFA Euro 2020 to Italy.
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