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Gareth Southgate has insisted England are reviewing all of Jordan Henderson’s matches in Saudi Arabia after the midfielder was criticized on Friday night.
The Three Lions won 1–0 against Australia, with Aston Villa hitman Ollie Watkins scoring the only goal of the game at Wembley.
England opted to start Henderson for the match, despite the 33-year-old playing for Saudi Arabian team Al-Ettifaq.
The former Liverpool star was widely criticized in the summer after choosing to move to the Middle East, where homosexuality is illegal and even punishable by death.
England boss Gareth Southgate has defended Jordan Henderson after his team’s win over Australia
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Henderson has long supported the LGBTQ+ community, even wearing rainbow armbands and ribbons during his tenure at Anfield.
Yet as England struggled to a narrow victory over their rivals, a large section of the crowd jeered and whistled.
And Southgate has now criticized the Wembley boo boys, while also insisting England are reviewing Henderson’s performances in Saudi to justify the veteran’s selection.
“I don’t really understand it,” said the 53-year-old, whose team faces Italy in a European Championship qualifier on Tuesday.
“He is a player, he has played 79 games for England, his commitment and what he has done for England is extraordinary.
“His role on and off the pitch is extremely important.
“He has liked [Jude] Bellingham under his wing. He is a role model for the group in every part of his work.
“Some people decided to boo. I don’t really understand what it’s for.
“We play Italy here on Tuesday, let’s get behind this team.
“I know we didn’t play our best tonight, but we made a lot of changes.
“This is a team that is performing very well and they all deserve every bit of support.
“We are reviewing all [Henderson] game. I think he knitted and put things together a lot today.
“You need leadership, we didn’t have a lot of caps on the field so before the game, Hendo’s influence during the game was extremely important and he helped other players move forward in the game.”
Since moving to Saudi, Henderson has maintained a low profile.
But, in a recent interview with The Athletic, he defended his decision to take the money and move to another part of the world.
“I’ve just tried to help so far,” he said.
“And when I was asked to help, I reached out to help.
“I’ve worn ribbons. I’ve worn armbands. I’ve talked to people in that community to try to use my profile to help them. That’s all I’ve tried to do.
“I’m not going to sit here saying, ‘Why are they criticizing me?’ I understand that. These are all things I was thinking about, and I care.
“When I hear things like, ‘You’ve turned your back on us,’ I feel sad.
“I care. I have family and friends in the LGBTQ+ community… I’m comfortable knowing who I am and what I stand for.
latest developments:
England star Ollie Watkins was on target during his team’s 1-0 win over Australia on Friday night
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“But I understand [that] And I can accept that not everyone will get that.
“So I can only apologize to those people if they feel that way.”
It remains to be seen whether Henderson will start for England in Tuesday night’s clash with Italy.
When the two teams met in March, goals from Declan Rice and Harry Kane gave the Three Lions victory.
Luke Shaw was also out that day.
