Mohamed Salah calls for Liverpool to finally give 'special' farewell to club legend who doesn't even play for Reds anymore

Henderson is set to make his first appearance on the Anfield turf since his abrupt exit in the summer of 2023 when Liverpool face Brentford on the final day of the season. Unlike many of his peers from the Jurgen Klopp era, Henderson's immediate transfer to Saudi Arabia meant he never received a formal goodbye from the home faithful. Now back in the Premier League with the Bees, the former skipper's return coincides with a day where Salah and Andy Robertson are also expected to be in the spotlight.

Speaking to TNT Sports, Salah emphasised that Henderson’s contribution to the club’s recent success remains unmatched by almost any other modern figure. He said: “He didn’t get that send-off or farewell he deserved, because he left immediately. People in the city know how much it meant to Hendo also, being here captain of the club for 12 years, more than me, more than Virg, more than anyone.

"I don’t know how the club is going to manage it, I have no plan, I don’t know how the supporters will also manage it. But I really wish they do something special for him because he’s been one of the best players in this club and, without him and being there in the dressing room, we wouldn’t have achieved what we achieved.

"So I really hope the fans will give him a good send-off. I really hope so because again, he’s somebody you guys maybe not in the dressing room don’t know much what’s going on there. You (speaking to Steven Gerrard) are aware of that. You played with him, you know how much he is passionate and he loves the club, so I really wish the club would do something for him and the fans can do something special for him, because this is Liverpool and we do it this way.”

Henderson himself previously admitted that leaving Liverpool felt like a traumatic "break-up", and said: “Leaving Liverpool itself was huge and really difficult and at any point it was going to be hard because it had been my life for so long and then it is just gone like that… so I have struggled for a period after that.

"No, I couldn’t watch a lot of games, I certainly couldn’t watch Liverpool. I didn’t watch a lot of Premier League stuff then… probably picked the right place for that, I was half way around the world!

“Yeah, it was tough but when you leave Liverpool because I was there for so long because I had such an attachment and I dedicated a large part of my life there, when I left I found it really difficult and I suppose whatever I did or wherever I went.

“I don’t know what it felt like, it felt like a break-up, it was just difficult and I think if you asked a lot of players when they left a club, not just Liverpool but when you have been at a club for so long and you have that attachment to them whether you retire or move on.

“I think for a period of time that was hard but within time things change, you move on but I would say that was probably the most difficult time.”

The final matchday against Brentford will serve as a significant emotional milestone for Liverpool, marking a definitive end to one of the most successful eras in the club's history. Beyond Henderson's return, the likely departures of stalwarts like Salah and Robertson represent a massive transitional phase for the squad ahead of the summer transfer window. With European qualification targets and a new direction looming, the club must balance the nostalgia of a legendary farewell with the urgent need to rebuild for the future.