Jordan Henderson Nears £12million Move to Al Ettifaq from Liverpool

Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson is reportedly closing in on a £12million ($15.4m) move to Saudi Pro League side Al Ettifaq, managed by Steven Gerrard. According to The Athletic, the 33-year-old midfielder underwent a medical in Manchester on Friday and is now waiting for paperwork to be processed before the deal can be finalized.

Henderson is set to sign a three-year contract worth £700,000-a-week, which would bring an end to his 12-year career at Anfield. The move comes after Al-Ettifaq made an offer that Liverpool were happy to accept, with the midfielder having held discussions with manager Jurgen Klopp earlier in the week.

The Saudi club had initially been reluctant to pay a transfer fee, but after negotiations stalled over the weekend, they returned with a structure and timing of payments that satisfied Liverpool. Henderson is now expected to join his new teammates at their pre-season training camp in Croatia next week.

It has been a tumultuous period for Henderson, who has reportedly spoken at length with Klopp about his playing time next season and what his role would be going forward. Klopp is said to be aware of how difficult Henderson finds being out of the team, and the player would also be concerned about what a lack of minutes would mean for his place in the England set-up.

Liverpool have already allowed midfielder Fabinho to stay at home while he considers a potential £40million move to Al-Ittihad, and the prospect of not having both Henderson and Fabinho available for the season opener at Chelsea is not something Klopp would have considered.

Meanwhile, there has been interest in Liverpool’s Luis Diaz from Saudi club Al-Hilal, with a fee of £50million being mooted for the Colombian international. However, Liverpool have no plans to sell the winger.