Scottish football's Italy-trotter lands sixth club after deal with 'lucky' Serie B side

Henderson, 29, was out of contract this summer after four years at Empoli, with some speculation that he may return to British football. However, he has decided to remain in Italy after the Genoa-based club swooped for him.

Uncapped by Scotland, Henderson has been in Italy for the past seven years after deciding to try his luck on the continent back in 2018 when his contract at Celtic expired.

He first played for Bari in Serie B before moving to Hellas Verona. He had a loan spell with Empoli before switching to Lecce in 2020. He spent only one season there before moving to Empoli on a permanent deal, which was punctuated by one season with Palermo on loan.

Henderson was a regular in Serie A last season with Empoli and helped them reach the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia. However, they were unable to win their battle against relegation and were demoted to Serie B, where Henderson will now play with Sampdoria.

Sampdoria’s incredible escape from relegation

I Blucerchiati were fortunate to avoid relegation to Serie C last season. They finished 18th in the automatic Serie B relegation places, but were thrown a lifeline when Brescia were deducted four points, moving Sampdoria up to 17th, where they faced a play-off with Salernitana instead to maintain their place in the Italian second tier.

Sampdoria won the first leg 2-0 over a Salernitana team that was struck down by food poisoning and were then awarded the second leg 3-0 after Salernitana fans hurled objects on to the pitch.

Announcing Henderson’s arrival, a post on their website read: “U.C. Sampdoria announces the permanent acquisition of the registration rights of footballer Liam Henderson (born in Livingston, Scotland, on April 25, 1996). The midfielder has committed to the Blucerchiati club until June 30, 2027 (with a conditional renewal until June 30, 2028).”

Henderson broke into the Celtic first-team picture in 2013, although he found first-team opportunities hard to come by. He spent the 2015/16 on loan at Hibs, where he delivered two assists in the Scottish Cup final to help them defeat Rangers 3-2 at Hampden.