Ex-Aston Villa scout shares ‘distasteful’ Jordan Henderson verdict ahead of clash v Ajax
Aston Villa fans may react to former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson when he plays for Ajax at Villa Park.
That is according to ex-Villa Park scout Bryan King, with the England midfielder set to come up against Villa in Europa Conference League action.
The Midlands club face the Dutch giants in Amsterdam in Thursday’s (7 March) last 16 first leg, with the return leg scheduled for a week later.
Speaking to Villa News, King said: “You’ve got people in every crowd that would find a fault with him. He is trying to look after his family and himself, and if Saudi was the place he decided on for that, and the amount of money he got, good luck to him.
“I’m not sure whether he’s been the force that Ajax expected him to be since he got there to be honest. Good players become good players because of the players around them, and I don’t think the Ajax team is a good team.
“And I think Henderson is getting more responsibility and having to do more work than he thought he was going to do.
“If the crowd want to react, it’s just one of those things that I find distasteful. Why waste your time on it? We had all the silly booing when he played for England. People need to grow up and let the game develop as it develops.
“Villa have nothing to fear with Ajax, and I don’t think Henderson is going to be the crux of making Ajax the team that they think they are.”
Will former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson play a key role versus Aston Villa?
It remains to be seen how the Villa Park faithful will treat the England international when he comes to the Midlands.
First up, however, the two clubs will meet in Amsterdam, although there the travelling fans may just jeer every touch Henderson makes following his switch from Al-Ettifaq.
Unai Emery will not be paying too much attention to any such potential antics, with the manager keen to get the job done under the lights in Europe.
In other Aston Villa news, one player is now unsellable after a recent 97% display that left Manchester City star Jack Grealish wowed.
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