One of a plethora of players to have been seduced by Middle Eastern riches, Jordan Henderson has relinquished his duties as Liverpool captain to play under the tutelage of the man who handed him the Anfield armband eight years ago.
A reunion with Steven Gerrard and £700,000-a-week payday proved too enticing for Henderson to turn down, as the England international completed a controversial £12m move to Al Ettifaq after a 12-year stint on Merseyside - equating to £1m for every year of service.
While the 33-year-old was more than happy to let Luis Suarez, Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino shoulder the attacking burden while he mopped up in midfield, Henderson chipped in with a respectable 33 goals during his time with the Reds, including a handful of efforts that neither the Kop nor Jurgen Klopp - who hailed his former skipper as a "legend" - will be forgetting in a hurry.
Here, Sports Mole picks out Henderson's five best goals in a Liverpool jersey as he jets off to the Saudi Pro League to mixed responses.
5. Brighton & Hove Albion - July 8, 2020
By the time Liverpool paid a visit to the Amex Stadium for a behind-closed-doors date with Brighton & Hove Albion in July 2020, Henderson had already guided the Reds to their maiden Premier League title, but there was no let-up from Klopp's side on the South Coast.
The newly-crowned title holders needed just six minutes to draw first blood through Salah, and Brighton were the masters of their own downfall once again just two minutes later, culminating in Henderson netting his fourth goal of the season in some style.
The Liverpool skipper helped his side win possession by pressuring an onrushing Adam Webster - whose pass went astray to Naby Keita on the halfway line - and Klopp's champions came forward in droves in search of the coveted insurance goal.
Held up by several blue and white shirts, Salah turned provider to prod the ball back to Henderson, who doubled Liverpool's advantage with a crisp first-time strike into the far corner from 25 yards.
Mathew Ryan got a hand to the midfielder's effort but could only help the ball on its way into the side of the net, as Liverpool travelled back to base with a 3-1 win in the bag, but the Reds would fall just one point short in their bid to breach the 100 mark.
4. Norwich City - January 19, 2013
Suarez and Daniel Sturridge took most of the plaudits when Norwich City came to town in January 2013, as Brendan Rodgers's Liverpool navigated their way past the Canaries with consummate ease; putting five past their Carrow Road counterparts without reply.
However, before Liverpool's deadly duo of yesteryear added to their tallies for the campaign, a 22-year-old Henderson - who had failed to score in the first half of the 2012-13 Premier League season - wanted a belated slice of the action.
With 26 minutes on the clock, Suarez was mobbed by a sea of yellow shirts on the edge of the area, but the Uruguayan attacker managed to evade the Norwich challenges before delicately chipping the ball back to Henderson, who unleashed a peach of a half volley into the net from inside the D.
Rodgers soon waxed lyrical about Henderson's "fantastic" opener, which set Liverpool on their way to a five-star and 5-0 romping of Chris Hughton's Canaries, and the Englishman would appropriately finish the 2012-13 top-flight season with five goals to his name.
3. AC Milan - September 15, 2021
The goals slowly dried up for Henderson during the twilight of his Liverpool career, but during a Champions League group-stage match with AC Milan in September 2021, the England international made sure the Rossoneri would experience a taste of his first-time prowess.
A Fikayo Tomori own goal propelled the Reds into the lead, but the Kop were left silenced by a pair of Ante Rebic and Brahim Diaz strikes just before the half-time whistle blew, leaving them with a 2-1 deficit to make up after the break.
Just four minutes after the restart, Salah redeemed himself for an earlier missed penalty with a timely equaliser, and following a succession of corners which failed to bear fruit, Liverpool finally made one of their dead-ball situations count in the 69th minute.
Trent Alexander-Arnold's tame delivery to the near post was headed partially clear by Ismael Bennacer, but the Algerian could only set up Henderson to complete a stunning comeback win with a venomous low strike inside the D.
AC Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan was powerless to prevent Henderson's sizzling strike from nestling into the bottom corner, as the midfielder ended a seven-year goal drought in the Champions League to settle another spectacular European encounter versus the Rossoneri.
2. Manchester City - March 1, 2015
One year on from Liverpool's agonising failure to go all the way in the English top flight, Henderson enjoyed his most productive season in front of goal in the 2014-15 campaign, netting six goals while setting up 10 more in the Premier League.
The 33-year-old had picked up a late red card when Rodgers's Reds bested Manchester City at Anfield in April 2014, but Henderson quickly rectified that mistake during the champions' next visit to Merseyside 11 months later, opening the scoring in the 11th minute with a truly wonderful effort.
Wearing the captain's armband as Gerrard missed out through injury, Henderson was found in acres of space on the left flank by Raheem Sterling, and the stand-in skipper cut inside before finding the top corner with an astonishing curler from nearly 25 yards.
An equally stunning effort from Philippe Coutinho saw Liverpool come out on top 2-1 after Edin Dzeko had briefly restored parity for Man City, who would eventually finish 17 points clear of their Europa League-bound opponents come the end of the campaign.
1. Chelsea - September 16, 2016
An injury-disrupted 2016-17 season saw Henderson make the net ripple just once in all competitions, but the Englishman's solitary Premier League goal was arguably the finest he ever scored while sporting the Liverpool colours.
Before Antonio Conte found success with his three-at-the-back system with Chelsea, the Blues suffered their first defeat of their triumphant campaign just five weeks into the season, as a Henderson-captained Liverpool made their trip to West London in September 2016 worthwhile and then some.
Dejan Lovren had already sent Liverpool ahead from close range in the 17th minute, and before Martin Atkinson's half-time whistle blew, Chelsea also paid the price for failing to properly clear their lines.
Gary Cahill had given the hosts a few seconds of respite as he hacked away a throw-in, but the ball fell kindly for Henderson some 35 yards from goal, and the midfielder took one neat touch before sending an unstoppable strike into the top corner, beyond the futile reach of 6ft 6in goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.
Despite a second-half Diego Costa response, Henderson's first goal in 20 games for Liverpool proved telling at Stamford Bridge, and the Al Ettifaq new boy is unlikely to score a better goal in what remains of his distinguished career. body check tags ::
