Chelsea leads race for Jordan Henderson; Brentford willing to release him for free

Published Jul 27, 05:28 PM UTC

According to The Athletic reporter David Ornstein, Chelsea is the frontrunner to sign 36-year-old Brentford midfielder Jordan Henderson. Brentford is willing to let Henderson leave on a free transfer despite having one year left on his contract. Henderson, an England international, fractured his left arm after slipping over an advertising board following England's World Cup victory at the Azteca Stadium. He made one substitute appearance in the group stage and remained with the squad until their semi-final loss to Argentina. Chelsea, which has focused on signing young players in recent seasons, is now targeting experienced players, including 35-year-old Brighton forward Danny Welbeck and 33-year-old Sunderland midfielder Granit Xhaka. Henderson previously played for Liverpool for 12 seasons, serving as captain and winning the Premier League and Champions League. He also faced criticism for moving to Al-Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia due to his past LGBTQ+ advocacy. Chelsea's new head coach Xabi Alonso has already signed Morgan Rogers for £117 million and Palestra from Atalanta.