Ex Celtic ace hatches pre-World Cup transfer plan ahead of imminent Saudi exit as he declares 'I’ve got a lot of offers'
Scotland international wants to resolve his club future before kick-starting World Cup adventure
Former Celtic defender Jack Hendry plans to have his club future sorted out before representing Scotland at the World Cup - but he won’t be heading back to his homeland any time soon.
The 31-year-old centre-back, who spent three-and-a-half years at Parkhead between January 2018 and August 2021, is out of contract at Saudi Pro League club Al-Ettifaq this summer and revealed he has plenty of offers on the table from across the globe to mull over.
Hendry - capped 37 times - will put himself in the shop window by turning out for his country in North America, but admits he will decide his next career destination before the Scots’ long-awaited return to the World Cup finals gets underway in just ten days time.
One thing is for certain, Hendry won’t be returning to Scottish football as he looks to extend his time abroad and broaden his horizons further, having already played in England, Australia, Belgium and Italy to date.
“I’ve got a lot of offers,” he told reporters at Scotland’s pre-tournament training camp in Florida. “Having played in different countries now, it’s opened up a lot of markets for myself. Naturally, that’s helped me, I’ve been pleasantly surprised.
“When some players go out of contract, it can go quite quiet. But it’s been quite busy and I’ll probably make my decision before the start of the tournament. I’ve been quite lucky with the offers that have come to me.
“Can I see a return to Scotland? Not now. I’m not slamming the Scottish leagues and it may happen towards the end of my career, but at this moment I just think I can play at a higher level.
“You have the top teams in the league who play in Europe and that would be an aspiration of mine if I came back to Europe. I just think the Scottish market is probably a league I won’t go back to at this moment in time.”
Hendry open to extending stay in Middle East
Hendry has spent the past three years in the Middle East but is refusing to rule out committing to a longer stay beyond this summer, adding: “There’s Saudi Arabia and I don’t think the book’s closed there.
“The country has been great for me and my family. It’s one of the top leagues in the world and it’s only going to get better towards the World Cup in 2034. I’ve taken myself out of my comfort zone during my career. There have been difficult times, for sure. But the Scottish boys have shown we can go abroad, compete and do well.”
Hendry will hope to find himself in contention to start Scotland’s World Cup opener against Haiti in Boston on June 14. He was an unused substitute in the 4-1 friendly win over Curacao at Hampden Park last weekend, but is likely to feature in the final warm-up game against Bolivia in New Jersey on Saturday.
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