Jordan Henderson returns to the Premier League after his recent departure from Ajax. The England international signed a two-year contract with Brentford on Tuesday.
The 35-year-old Henderson moves to Brentford on a free transfer because Ajax agreed last week to the captain’s request to terminate his contract immediately. Henderson still had a contract in Amsterdam until the summer of 2026.
Ajax was thus rid of Henderson’s salary. He reportedly weighed heavily on the budget with an annual salary of 4.5 million euros. After some dramatic years, Ajax has to cut back considerably on salary expenses.
Brentford was eager to pick up Henderson. “When we heard that Jordan was available, it was a pretty easy decision,” says coach Keith Andrews on the Brentford website. The club finished tenth in the Premier League last season.
“We have thoroughly reviewed his recent matches to see where he is at the moment. He is still phenomenally fit and extremely motivated to achieve things, even though he has already achieved a lot.”
Henderson was a celebrated Premier League player
Henderson was a celebrated player in the Premier League when he left for abroad in the summer of 2023. The midfielder played twelve years for Liverpool, with whom he won the national title, the Champions League and the world title for clubs.
After his period at Liverpool, Henderson opted for a lucrative adventure with the Saudi club Al Ettifaq, which drew criticism in England. The rights for the queer community are in poor condition in Saudi Arabia, something Henderson has been advocating for in his own country.
Henderson didn’t even last half a year in Saudi Arabia, but then didn’t opt for a return to England. It also played a role that the midfielder would have had to pay millions to the English tax authorities if he were to play in the Premier League again.
Through an intermediate step via Ajax, Henderson now avoids an additional assessment from the British tax authorities. Last season he was a driving force in the team of coach Francesco Farioli, which lost the national title to PSV in the last rounds of the competition and finished second. At Ajax he returned to the English team.
Henderson was previously linked with a return to his youth team Sunderland, which has been promoted to the Premier League. It is not clear whether the promoted team has made a serious attempt to attract him.