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Jude Bellingham and Steven Gerrard have come forward to show their support towards Jordan Henderson after the former Liverpool skipper was at the end of loud boos at Wembley.
England squared off against Australia on Friday (October 13) in a friendly fixture at Wembley. Ollie Watkins scored in the 57th minute and helped the Three Lions to a win over the Socceroos.
Despite positive results, Jordan Henderson was booed by the home fans throughout the match. The former Liverpool midfielder was making his return to the national team for the first time after he joined Saudi Pro League side, Al Ettifaq, earlier this summer.
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Henderson was loudly booed by the fans before the match started and also later when he was substituted in the second half. The midfielder's decision to move to Saudi has attracted fierce criticism from fans.
Having publicly extended support to the LGBTQ+ community as Liverpol captain, his decision to move to Saudi Arabia left fans feeling betrayed. Homosexuality is illegal in Saudi Arabia, and this made his previous stance seem like a hollow gesture. While simply moving to Saudi for a bigger payday could also be the reason for the boos, Henderson is far from the only international footballer guilty of that.
After the match, the Al Ettifaq midfielder also addressed the treatment saying it wasn't a good thing. However, Henderson confirmed that he won't be walking away from International football.
Nevertheless, Jordan Henderson has received support from former England captain, Steven Gerrard and Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham. Gerrard reshared Henderson's quotes on his Instagram story and wrote:
"Legend," he also added a red heart emoji with the post.
Former Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham also reshared the quotes on his social media account with a white heart emoji.
Speaking of the Three Lions, they will be looking forward to hosting Italy in the UEFA Euro qualifier on October 17 (Tuesday) at Wembley Stadium.
England star Jordan Henderson wants to improve the Saudi Pro League
Talking to Sky Sports after the game, the former Liverpool skipper opened up on what hisngoalsnfrom his stint at Saudi Arabia. He stated that he wanted to improve the game on-field as well as off-field. He said:
"The whole league. The football. I'm not a politician. I'm not going to get into politics. All I've ever done is concentrate on my football and try to help people who have asked for my help."
"When I'm going out there, I'm just playing football trying to improve the league, trying to improve my own team and trying to win football games."
After 492 appearances across 12 seasons at Anfield, Henderson moved to Saudi Pro League side, Al-Ettifaq, for a transfer fee of £12 million ($15.4m) plus add-ons. He contributed 33 goals and 61 assists for the Reds, leading them to UEFA Champions League success in 2019 and lifting the Premier League in 2020.
This season, the 33-year-old has made nine appearances for the Saudi Pro League side and has recorded five assists across different competitions. Next up, Al-Ettifaq will lock horns against Al-Riyadh on October 22 (Sunday).
