Henderson is about to give Southgate no other choice but to break his own rule

“Henderson is a trusted lieutenant. Capped 78 times, his appearance against Ukraine was his 50th under Southgate. But if he gets another in Glasgow on Tuesday night, it will surely be his last.”

In an interview ahead of the game against Ukraine in Wroclaw on Saturday, James Maddison was recalling how difficult it had been to get back into the England squad and into the team.

Maddison made his international debut when he came on as a substitute when England were five up against Montenegro in November, 2019. His next England appearance came in March of this year, although he did go to World Cup 2022 where injury stopped him from playing.

“Gareth is a very loyal man,” Maddison said last week. “Sometimes it is harder for people to break in than actually get out, if you know what I mean?” Well, what we think James means is that if you get in and serve Southgate well, it takes a lot to get you out of the squad.

In praising Southgate’s loyalty, Maddison had unwittingly underlined one of the more understandable criticisms of the England manager’s thinking. In Wroclaw, Jordan Henderson was one of two players who had started in Southgate’s first game as England manager in 2016, the other being Kyle Walker.

Henderson is a trusted lieutenant. Capped 78 times, his appearance against Ukraine was his 50th under Southgate. But if he gets another in Glasgow on Tuesday night, it will surely be his last

Unless, of course, Southgate decides to take a trip to Saudi – perhaps to go to Al-Ettifaq’s game against Al-Ta’ee – and is impressed with the standard and level of intensity Henderson is operating at. Unlikely.

But even if Southgate thinks Henderson can do some sort of job in the two October games, what is the point? He cannot go to the Euros on the back of an entire season in Saudi – just as Harry Maguire cannot go if he plays very little Premier League football this season.

Henderson is now playing in a much less physically demanding league than his England teammates (

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Maguire’s inclusion in Poland was understandable in the sense he was the only centre-half with significant international experience. But the scenario for Maguire is simple. He needs to either get game time at Manchester United through injury to others or get a move in January.

Henderson is a different case. The one piece of interesting information in the interview he gave to explain his move to Saudi was when he admitted that Jurgen Klopp made no effort to keep him. That says a lot.

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In the wake of the social media backlash that followed the Al-Ettifaq player’s interview last week, England players and Southgate have been very supportive of Henderson. That is also understandable, Henderson having been a leader of the group for a long time and a hugely respected figure. And loyal Gareth has always been supportive, even when Henderson posts the sort of largely humdrum performance he gave in Wroclaw.

But you suspect a small part of the reason Southgate never contemplated NOT picking Henderson for this current squad was that it might have been interpreted as a political statement, or an instant slur against the Saudi league.

If he does not pick Henderson for the next squad, it will be because he is playing his weekly football in a low grade. It IS hard to get out of Gareth’s squad … but with his switch to Saudi, Henderson should have managed it. And nothing England saw on Saturday should change that.