Gareth Southgate has criticised England supporters who booed the captain, Jordan Henderson. It was Henderson’s first appearance at Wembley since his controversial move to Saudi Arabia.
Subscribe to Guardian Football ► http://is.gd/GuardianFootball

Southgate said the fans’ actions ‘defy logic’, adding: ‘He’s a player who has won 79 caps for England and his commitment and what he has delivered for England is exceptional.

Henderson, who now plays for Al-Ettifaq in the Saudi Pro League, was one of several players who expressed support for the Saudi Arabian bid to host the 2034 World Cup on social media last week. But asked whether that had been a contributing factor, Southgate insisted that it was counterproductive for his team.

The Guardian publishes independent journalism, made possible by supporters. Contribute to The Guardian today ► https://support.theguardian.com/contribute

Website ► https://www.theguardian.com
Facebook ► https://www.facebook.com/theguardian
Twitter ► https://twitter.com/guardian
Instagram ► https://www.instagram.com/guardian

The Guardian on YouTube:
The Guardian ► https://bit.ly/guardiannewssubs
Guardian News ► https://bit.ly/guardiannewssubs
Guardian Australia ► https://bit.ly/guardianaussubs
Guardian Sport ► https://bit.ly/gdnsportsubs
Guardian Live ► https://bit.ly/guardianlivesubs

#Henderson #Southgate #SaudiArabia

10 Comments

  1. "“I never pick on reputation — form has to come into it." Gareth Southgate, 2017. His whole thing was not falling into the trap of keeping players in the squad who don't deserve to be there, yet he keeps picking players who don't play for their clubs or who are playing outside the top 30 leagues in the world. To paraphrase Shakespeare: HOISTED!

  2. Southgate has lost the plot, Henderson and a few others are long gone, Lee Carsley and his under 21 team are the future, they would have took that Australian team to pieces.

  3. He seems to not understand a lot . Hence he plays donuts such as Henderson and McGuire. Southgate needs to be given his p45 and a taxicab immediately

  4. What would really intrigue me is seeing the private conversations between Southgate, Holland & Henderson that have led to these decisions. Is Jordan really so forceful or persuasive that he can talk his way into contention against the odds? Or is Gareth so deeply fond of him and attached to him that he's blind to the reality? Why has this transpired?

    And I say this as someone who actually still likes Jordan as a person and a player (even in spite of recent developments), but this caping for him is a joke. Hendo's a grown man, he made his unpalatable choices, and football fans have a right to express their feelings about blatant hypocrisy without being lectured as if they're naughty set 8 kids. Enough of this.

Leave A Reply