Jordan Henderson branded an 'actor' by Dutch journalist who has accused him of lying after fiery news conference incident goes viral

Jordan Henderson has been labelled an "actor" by a Dutch journalist who has accused the underfire Ajax captain of telling lies during a recent press conference.

Ahead of Sunday afternoon's Eredivisie clash between Ajax and Feyenoord, widespread reports emerged suggesting the England international had asked to leave Ajax to join Ligue 1 side AS Monaco.

Henderson would later accuse reporters of making "untrue" claims about his failed move to the French club.

Speaking to ESPN after Sunday's game, the 34-year-old strenuously denied rumours about requesting to leave Ajax, saying "a lot of things were taken out of context" by the press and "untruths" were told about him as a person.

He then became embroiled in a heated press conference argument with a number of reporters, including Mike Verweij from Dutch publication De Telegraaf.

Asked if it was true that Ajax wanted to sell him, Henderson said: "Well, they were negotiating so I imagine they did, yeah... they were negotiating a fee. It's not about about the details. I'm not giving you details."

"I know the truth," he added. "I know what happened. I'm not here to give you details, I'm just saying from my side."

The day after Henderson's much-talked-about press conference and journalist Valentijn Driessen has given his take on the incident in a column for De Telegraaf.

Here, he accused the former Liverpool and Sunderland midfielder of "wanting to turn his back on Ajax" for Monaco before labelling him an "actor" for his actions.

"Jordan Henderson used the tried and tested recipe of his top footballer status and imaginary image to save face after his immature behaviour last week at Ajax-Galatasaray," wrote Driessen.

"He launched a frontal counter-attack after the victory in the Klassieker – in the spirit of the current Ajax game – and said that 99% of all stories about a transfer to AS Monaco forced by him were lies."

He added: "That was the biggest lie of all. When he was questioned afterwards during the press conference, he hid behind details that he did not want to go public about. Realizing that it would seriously undermine his defense.

"The Ajax captain flirted seriously with AS Monaco and wanted to turn his back on Ajax immediately for a French adventure. Initially he refused to play, but the club management was able to dissuade him.

"Nevertheless, the model professional took his frustration from the dressing room to the field. Henderson walked onto the field as leader of the group of players with the captain's armband."

Image credit: Getty

Driessen then suggested it was "very cheap" that Henderson brought his family into the argument, adding: "He could handle criticism, but his father, mother, wife, children, family and friends suffered from it. Henderson found that disrespectful."

He then labelled the Liverpool midfielder an "actor".

"That doesn't change the fact that his behavior has blown up in his face," Driessen added. "So much so that the mask has fallen off. In a fit of panic, Henderson is looking for the blame with the well-informed media by making a lot of noise with unfounded accusations. Something with which he makes a fool of himself for the umpteenth time.

"Henderson is not the person he wants to be. He is an actor, and a bad one at that."

SPORTbible has reached out to Jordan Henderson's representatives for comment.

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